Having your own allotment to grow fruits and vegetables – whether it be in your garden or a private allotment can provide many benefits including pesticide free crops!
My brother, Graham, is one of many hundreds of people across the UK that manages an allotment. I took the opportunity to ask him some questions about it and I hope it will encourage some of you to try your hand to growing a crop or two!
- How did you start growing your own vegetables? ‘For many years I lived in flats with limited outdoor space and there was never an opportunity to grow my own vegetables. About 5 years ago I moved house and had for the first time an outside garden. I jumped on the opportunity to try and grow some basic foods such as tomatoes, cucumbers and chillies. I found I really enjoyed it – both the planting and the eating! I needed more space though so started to look into how to get an allotment. I put my name down with the local council and also applied to an advert for an allotment plot nearby, placed by the local parish council. The local parish council replied and the rest as they say is history!’
- What are the responsibilities of having an allotment? ‘I have to maintain the plot which includes ensuring the pathways are clear and the plot itself is cultivated and not overgrown. I have to pay an annual fee which is currently £40’.
- What do you grow? ‘I try to grow a range of vegetables such as potatoes, French beans, cumbers, tomatoes, beetroot, pumpkins, butternut squash, spinach, lettuce, red cabbage, savoy cabbage, onions and spring onions. I also grow some fruits such as strawberries, blackberries and raspberries and rhubarb’.
- What is in season for you right now? We are coming to the end of the busiest periods. Raspberries are the most dominant fruit right now and were are just finishing with the tomatoes, cucumbers, beetroot and spring onions. I am in the process of picking the first chilies of the season. In the next month or so I will start planting garlic for next June’.
- What treatments to you use on your soil to help the plants grow? ‘Essentially it is just compost. I try to make as much of my own as possible from rotten down leafs and grass etc but I can not make enough for what I need so I always buy some’.
- Can you provide 3 tips for anyone considering starting an allotment? ‘Firstly, be prepared to invest some time into the allotment. When you first have an allotment, depending on the state of what you inherit, it may require some hard work and several hours to get it into the state you want it to be. When you get into the maintenance routine of plaint and cultivating you need to be preyed to invest time, probably 3-4 hours a week. During Spring and Summer you will need to be there at least once a week for a maintenance. Secondly buy seeds when you see special offers. You a spend a lot of money on seeds if you don’t. Thirdly invest in some netting protection for your crops. You won’t regret it!’.
- Apart from the satisfaction of growing and eating your own produce, are there any other benefits to having an allotment? ‘It can actually be quite relaxing and at the same time a good form or energy: 2-3 hours digging and planting can just fly by. It has its challenges of course but I enjoy working through them. I have made a lot of mistakes but the trick is to learn from them and keep persevering. And of course it is always good to know that you are eating fresh food that hasn’t been transported across the world and hasn’t been sprayed with any chemicals that you are not aware of!
In season vegetables right now:
Fruits: Apples, Blueberries, Figs, Pears, Plums
Vegetables: Beetroot, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Carrots, Celery, Chard, Chillies, Courgettes, Cucumbers, Fennel, French Beans, Lettuce, Onions, Peppers, Runner Beans, Spinach, Sweetcorn, Shallots, Tomatoes