Page 15 - Allotment Gardener Issue 1 2024

PLOT PLANNING
Zoe Claymore is a NAS ambassador and multi-award-winning garden
designer based in London. She focuses on creating outdoor
places with emotional connection and
ecological integrity, for her private
and commercial clients.
She offers garden design, planting design
and garden consultation
services to discerning clients
across the UK.
created a space for an apple tree which, over time, will house more wild plants beneath it, a space for a pollinating flower boarder and a log pile. Introducing a water source, bird bath or pond will also help draw in predators, such as hedgehogs, birds (net your berries and brassicas though) and foxes; these will protect your plot and boost biodiversity at the same time.
8 Making the most of materials What materials will you use? Budget is an
important consideration, but it is also important to consider the full lifecycle of anything we purchase for our plots. Buying cheap can mean buying twice and adding to landfill if you are not careful. For me the best thing to do is save up and buy a quality item that will last, and if in doubt get something you can take with you if you were to ever move on. Second hand tools and garden furniture are also great to go to!
9 Choosing your crops
Now you know the above, you can start
creating a long shopping list of plants which will
work for your location. I usually come up with
a long list of plants this time of year and then whittle it down with realism. To help me whittle down the list, I ask myself three questions:
• What do you like eating? Ignore fads and quite simply grow what you like to look at and eat.
• How many will my household eat? Consider how many you and your household will realistically consume. I tend to grow 30% more for wastage.
• How much time do I have? No point growing a crop that needs harvesting every day when you’ll only be down once a week. If you
are short on time, go for fruit over veg and perennial crops.
10 Plotting your plants
Once you have your chosen plant list,
read the plant spacing carefully. You can then plan their positioning on your plot using your scale drawing. By doing this you’ll not only provide sufficient air flow around the plants
to help them grow, but also reduce the risk of disease developing. To experiment I use tracing paper (but kitchen paper works equally well) to draw overlays of plans and explore different options. Don’t forget to think about when they’ll actually be in the ground and harvesting times.
Hope this helps and happy creating!
Photographs by Annabelle May Photography. Perspective drawings by Zoe Claymore
If you would like some more help and advice on how to answer each question, visit Zoe’s Instagram or YouTube channel where she is running a video series “How to Plan your Plot” providing advice and tips.
www.zoeclaymore.com Instagram: @zoe_claymore Allotment Diary: @my.rented.garden
Allotment Gardener | Issue 1 2024 | 15