Page 37 - ALG Issue 2 2025

EAST MIDLANDS Welcome to…
20 individuals
Gretton Allotment Group
Welbeck Allotment Association
Belper Town Council
Rhodesia Parish Council
Ruskington Parish Council
Plot 12A:
Growing Memories,
One Season at a Time
My husband David and I took on an
overgrown allotment almost three years
ago. Our townhouse tiny garden just wasn’t
big enough anymore for our needs; we
wanted more space to grow the expanded
range of fruit and vegetables that David had
grown during the Covid lockdowns.
Fast forward to 2025 and what David
has achieved on our plot is amazing. He’s
created raised beds of various shapes and
sizes, growing a variety of fresh produce.
This includes the inherited rhubarb and
gooseberry bushes that we ‘found’ whilst
clearing the plot and our raspberry bushes
thrive in their new home – they taste
delicious!
We’re aiming to use the ‘no-dig’ principle
as much as possible and whilst our lovely
plot took shape, we utilised the space and
continued to grow in pots. We’re ‘learning
as we grow’ and, inevitably, some crops fail,
whilst others thrive. My favourite, however,
are our dahlias which we grew last year.
I’ve become obsessed with these; beautiful,
colourful, pompom and spiky shaped
flowers! To have cut flowers in our home
for five months of the year has been a real
luxury and it’s lovely to give homegrown
flowers to family and friends. We entered
them into the village Autumn Show and
won 3rd prize!
For me, as much as I love having
extra outdoor space to grow fresh fruit,
vegetables and flowers, our plot means
so much more. I’m happy and content
when sitting on our allotment bench; it’s
a peaceful, quiet, and calm place. It’s like
stepping back in time. It reminds me of
my childhood. My Dad is a keen gardener
and had an allotment when my brother
and I were growing up and his tools are
now being used on our plot. My late
Grandparents dedicated their entire back
garden to growing fruit and vegetables for
their family when Dad and his brothers
were children. I too remember as a child
standing in their garden picking and eating
various goodies, raspberries, strawberries,
and fresh peas straight from the pods. My
Great Grandfather was a gardener for
several stately homes at the turn of the
20th century. Maybe, I feel at peace on our
plot as this landscape is in my blood; maybe
it’s because it reminds me of my happy
childhood, or just a simpler time.
I love the sense of community we both
experience, meeting like-minded people
and I’m excited about our future there. This
year whilst on our Christmas day walk, we
called at the allotment, sat on our bench,
and drank a flask of mulled wine whilst
taking in the view; perhaps we’ve started a
new Christmas tradition….
And as with the circle of life, it’s
reassuring that other people may tend and
cherish plot 12A in the future, as much as
we do today.
Clare and David Hall
"What David has achieved on our plot is amazing"
Derbyshire
East Midlands
Regional AGM
The East Midlands Region held its
AGM on Saturday 25 January. It was
a hybrid meeting; some members
attended in person at Corby and
others were on Zoom. There was
good attendance from the six
counties of our region. We were
able to elect a new committee and
officers. The new Chair is Janet
Carter from Derbyshire and the
Secretary is Claire Tilley from
Northamptonshire. The committee
is now supporting plans in the
region, including events in National
Allotments Week. We have been
invited to have a stall at a Food
and Farming Event in Market
Harborough Town square on
Saturday 9th August. Any members
in our region are welcome to come
along and meet us there.
Allotment and Leisure Gardener | Issue 2 2025 | 37