Allotments.....who has one?
- Thread starter Hicky
- Start date
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accountantpete
OAP
I haven't got one but do help a neighbour with his on the odd occasion.
The idea sounds nice but the reality is that It's basically a labour of love - you don't do it save money - and there are animal and insect pests aplenty on some allotments not to mention the weeds and the drainage (or lack thereof).
Add on the time cultivating and fertilizing the soil and you will find that you have to be pretty dedicated to carry on.
The idea sounds nice but the reality is that It's basically a labour of love - you don't do it save money - and there are animal and insect pests aplenty on some allotments not to mention the weeds and the drainage (or lack thereof).
Add on the time cultivating and fertilizing the soil and you will find that you have to be pretty dedicated to carry on.
Hugh Manatee
Veteran
We have two! Strictly speaking two half plots on the same site about 50m apart. I have found it best to grow slightly higher value produce.
For example, I can buy a nice cabbage from the farm down the road for 50p. I don't bother growing them. Everything that flies, crawls, walks, slithers and more likely swims wants to eat them so why go to the hassle? So far we have planted/sown garlic, shallots, onions, broad beans, French beans, peas, beetroot and salad onions. The soft fruit is coming into bud nicely and there will be a lot more to follow once the soil warms slightly.
I'm still waiting for the one plot to dry sufficiently to use my slightly under powered rotovator on it.
If you don't get hung up buying gadgets (guilty!) it needn't be too expensive. Our first year we knew nothing! We read a couple of books and followed the instructions on the back of the seed packets. It was a very successful season!
For example, I can buy a nice cabbage from the farm down the road for 50p. I don't bother growing them. Everything that flies, crawls, walks, slithers and more likely swims wants to eat them so why go to the hassle? So far we have planted/sown garlic, shallots, onions, broad beans, French beans, peas, beetroot and salad onions. The soft fruit is coming into bud nicely and there will be a lot more to follow once the soil warms slightly.
I'm still waiting for the one plot to dry sufficiently to use my slightly under powered rotovator on it.
If you don't get hung up buying gadgets (guilty!) it needn't be too expensive. Our first year we knew nothing! We read a couple of books and followed the instructions on the back of the seed packets. It was a very successful season!
summerdays
Cycling in the sun
- Location
- Bristol
We have a plot, (and I'm on the committee too
), but most of the work is done by Mr Summerdays, I just do the cooking/freezing/jam making/processing of what comes out of the allotment. Work wise it's now is the busy season through to the summer, and then autumn/winter is mostly choosing some good days for tidying/soil prep etc. Ideally you need to live fairly near by so that you can get there multiple times a week when you need to water. We don't have any water on site other than what is collected in all manner of ways. A lot of the stuff we grow is the stuff you don't get in the shops, different varieties or unusual veg. Our site is an organic one, and it is run on a fairly laid back way, though someone using weed killer last year did cause ructions!
It's a nice bunch of people who have a bit of a social cake and veg swap every now and again. (Well the cake gets eaten rather than swapped).
My main hassle as a committee member is getting people to tend their plots, others, especially those on the waiting list, don't like to see plots covered in weeds with nobody working them. We have the occasional bout of vandalism - probably once a year, but we get more trouble from the wildlife than kids!
), but most of the work is done by Mr Summerdays, I just do the cooking/freezing/jam making/processing of what comes out of the allotment. Work wise it's now is the busy season through to the summer, and then autumn/winter is mostly choosing some good days for tidying/soil prep etc. Ideally you need to live fairly near by so that you can get there multiple times a week when you need to water. We don't have any water on site other than what is collected in all manner of ways. A lot of the stuff we grow is the stuff you don't get in the shops, different varieties or unusual veg. Our site is an organic one, and it is run on a fairly laid back way, though someone using weed killer last year did cause ructions! It's a nice bunch of people who have a bit of a social cake and veg swap every now and again. (Well the cake gets eaten rather than swapped).
My main hassle as a committee member is getting people to tend their plots, others, especially those on the waiting list, don't like to see plots covered in weeds with nobody working them. We have the occasional bout of vandalism - probably once a year, but we get more trouble from the wildlife than kids!
Dave 123
Legendary Member
- Location
- Cambridgeshire alps
To do it justice you'll need to give it some time, time that you could be doing other stuff.
At home I have 3 beds 4x1 metre that I grow onions, garlic, a bit of salad and some parsnips. I intersperse it with flowers.
I have a 1x4 metre bed of strawberries.
The beds were expensive to build and I fill them with bought in blended soil that's not cheap.
The beds are quick and easy to look after, they look good and produce a little bit of something.
If you have the space at home is suggest this.
If I remember I'll post some photos.
At home I have 3 beds 4x1 metre that I grow onions, garlic, a bit of salad and some parsnips. I intersperse it with flowers.
I have a 1x4 metre bed of strawberries.
The beds were expensive to build and I fill them with bought in blended soil that's not cheap.
The beds are quick and easy to look after, they look good and produce a little bit of something.
If you have the space at home is suggest this.
If I remember I'll post some photos.
Dave 123
Legendary Member
- Location
- Cambridgeshire alps
These pics are a couple of years old
shouldbeinbed
Rollin' along
- Location
- Manchester way
Glow worm
Legendary Member
- Location
- Near Newmarket
I have one. The plot is enormous (30x15 yards) so I only use a part of it- around 40ft x 20ft. It can be a bit daunting at times, especially at this time of year, but I tend to do a little, and often so the work doesn't build up. It's amazing how much you can get done (weeding/ digging over/ sowing etc) in an hour.
It's very rewarding once you start cropping, we grow flowers too so it's been fun having daffs and now tulips and gladioli in summer, though last year was a bit of a disaster (dreadful summer and lots of blight) and I must admit to losing some enthusiasm. On balance though I'd definately recommend it.
It's very rewarding once you start cropping, we grow flowers too so it's been fun having daffs and now tulips and gladioli in summer, though last year was a bit of a disaster (dreadful summer and lots of blight) and I must admit to losing some enthusiasm. On balance though I'd definately recommend it.
Dave 123
Legendary Member
- Location
- Cambridgeshire alps
I'll second that.
growingvegetables
Guru
- Location
- Leeds
Had one, sometimes two, allotment plots for years. (And miss them desperately.)
Three years in, they can be VERY productive - keeping a family cheaply virtually self-sufficient in seasonal veg and soft fruit, with plenty of glut surplus for the freezer, friends, neighbours, or the compost heap. Three years in, you've worked out what grows well on your patch, your rotation is working, and the soil is in rude health.
By then it's pretty cheap to run, and more than pays for itself. By then the labour follows a pretty predictable seasonal rhythm; mostly months of regular tasks of tick-over maintenance, with short periods of very intense labour.
It's not so much the amount of work that is difficult, but the regularity - for 2-3 years I kept TWO full-size plots going successfully. A Sunday spent on the plots, with one or two extra evenings a week at times of sowing, harvesting, and preparation.
But - there's a catch in all that.
. Three years in. AFTER an enormous investment in clearing wilderness and making it fertile. THAT'S the bugger. Get past that, and an allotment is an addictive dawdle. Hmm, correction - it's addictive, and you THINK it's a dawdle, because you've internalised the rhythm, and it's a wonderful satisfaction.The only reason I know that, is that (at the time) the council would only allow new tenants a half-plot. When that was working well, they'd let you the other half. A good way to start - get the satisfaction of a working half plot, and build on your success.
DanZac
Senior Member
- Location
- Basingstoke
@growingvegetables has pretty much summed it up. I've got a full size plot and easily keep myself and wife in veg for 10 months of the year (all year if we had a bigger freezer) for less that £100. Effort wise it depends on the time of year, but once established, productive and you've got the hang of what grows well and what doesn't its probably around 5 - 10 hours a week spread throughout the year (2 or 3 in the winter, 10+ at peak times).
However it's getting to the productive point that's hard. I don't know about your area, but most vacant plots down here seem to be evictions so you end up taking over a plot which is like a patch of wasteland. This takes significant effort and determination to clear and make productive and seems to be where most people fail as it's just too much effort. The first few years are nothing like you see on the TV where the fork just slices through the ground and there's no weeds, I spent the first few months on my plot digging it with a pick axe as the ground was that compacted and the weeds that thick that nothing else would touch it (and it hand only been empty for 1 year but barely maintained for a couple before that).
To really get the most from it you would need a decent size greenhouse or Polly tunnel (both of which are easy targets for the wind and vandals) and probably be thinking of your allotment as more of a hobby than as a source of free veg. However please don't let my points above put you off as freshly grown and harvested veg tastes so much better. Anything that goes from ground to plate in less than an hour knocks the boots off supermarket veg which at best has been out the ground for a couple of days before it gets to your plate.
If your haven't done much veg growing before I would recommend having a go in pots, tubs, growbags or just giving over a bit of your garden first (it's amazing how much you can grow in a really small space), or look to find a half or shared plot for starters to see how you get on and how much time you have spare.
However it's getting to the productive point that's hard. I don't know about your area, but most vacant plots down here seem to be evictions so you end up taking over a plot which is like a patch of wasteland. This takes significant effort and determination to clear and make productive and seems to be where most people fail as it's just too much effort. The first few years are nothing like you see on the TV where the fork just slices through the ground and there's no weeds, I spent the first few months on my plot digging it with a pick axe as the ground was that compacted and the weeds that thick that nothing else would touch it (and it hand only been empty for 1 year but barely maintained for a couple before that).
To really get the most from it you would need a decent size greenhouse or Polly tunnel (both of which are easy targets for the wind and vandals) and probably be thinking of your allotment as more of a hobby than as a source of free veg. However please don't let my points above put you off as freshly grown and harvested veg tastes so much better. Anything that goes from ground to plate in less than an hour knocks the boots off supermarket veg which at best has been out the ground for a couple of days before it gets to your plate.
If your haven't done much veg growing before I would recommend having a go in pots, tubs, growbags or just giving over a bit of your garden first (it's amazing how much you can grow in a really small space), or look to find a half or shared plot for starters to see how you get on and how much time you have spare.
