Page 13 - Allotment Gardener Issue 1 2024

BOOK REVIEWS
Composting Techniques
By Rod Weston
It is widely accepted that composting benefits both the environment and the garden, as a means of reducing waste while contributing to a healthy soil.
In this practical guide, Rod Weston offers a host of composting techniques for the home, allotment and community gardener, as well as indoor and balcony composting for those without access to a garden. This well written book explains the
processes behind
aerobic composting
and anaerobic
fermentation, and the
conditions necessary
to compost
effectively without
mess or smell.
The Veg Table
By Erin Baker
We love this tasty seasonal cookery guide from our Chef and recipe contributor Erin Baker.
A great stocking filler for the vegetable grower in your life! This book is jammed full of fresh and flavoursome seasonal recipes - inspired by regional cuisine.
Throughout the book, readers are encouraged to swap and change vegetables for those that are in season, or to maybe just avoid making moussaka in February when the aubergines won’t taste as good.
This lovely book shares Erin’s passion for food and illustrates how gorgeous and indulgent vegetarian food can be.
The Allotment
By David Crouch and Colin Ward
Allotmenteering started with The Diggers in seventeenth-century Surrey, in response to the Enclosure Acts which deprived ordinary people of access to land. But the idea spread, first across England and the British Isles,
then through Europe and the world. The Allotment, originally published in 1988, is the classic study of allotments. Encompassing the oral recordings of plotholders alongside descriptions of regional variations on the plot itself, such as pigeon-fancying, seed collecting or leek competitions, it looks at British society and history through the prism of allotments. With a new introduction by Olivia Laing, this is a story that is just as relevant today, and is essential for those interested in social history, land ownership and gardening in twenty-first century Britain.
NAS In the News
NAS have hit the mainstream news a few times recently, including Phil Gomersall’s appearance on BBC Breakfast (see his scribblings). More humorously this very magazine was featured on the ‘guess the missing word’ section of ‘Have I Got News For You’ on Friday 3rd November. Whilst HO had approved featuring on the programme, we had no idea they were going to make our South West Representative’s slurry fork so famous!
SNIPPETS
Allotment Gardener | Issue 1 2024 | 13
A Lot About
The Allotment
The allotment is a happy place,
It puts a smile upon your face
When you see the seeds you’ve sown
Turn into veggies, fully grown,
Then you can say you grow your own.
The Robin watches while you dig, then feeds,
And sings to you from the trees,
Against the hum of working bees
On the flowers that you’ve grown.
They are so glad you grow your own.
Then children and grandchildren come
And sow, and plant, and take good care
Of all their crops that’re growing there.
They pick them and they take them home.
They taste better ‘cause they’ve grown their own.
So shun the supermarket shelf
With produce from far countries flown,
Leave them there for those, unlike yourself
With your own self-sufficient plot,
Aren’t fortunate to grow their own.
And when the glut of courgettes come
And runner beans have met your ends,
When you’ve preserved all that you can,
then share with food banks and your friends.
They’ll be pleased you’ve grown your own.
So cherish the allotment plot,
And at the ending of the year,
With friends you’ve made, you raise a glass
Of homemade parsnip wine and cheer
“We grow our own”.
Pam Rushbrook.
Needham Market Allotments, Suffolk.
New NAS Administrator
The NAS membership team welcomes Busanga Lengalenga – also known by her middle name Midnight – as our new NAS
Administrator at Head Office. Previously, Midnight worked in procurement for hotels in London, before moving to Corby at the
beginning of the pandemic.
She is passionate about working in a service role and is excited
to be part of an organisation that helps combat mental health issues in young adults across the UK. She says, “1 in 6 adults is suffering from a form
of mental health and knowing the allotments across the country help many of these individuals to overcome this, it is such a great thing to be a part of.”