Page 40 - ALG Issue 1 2025

EASTERN
LOOKING BACK AT
BURNSIDE VINERY
Last year, a member of our society with an interest in history said she would catalogue and sort our “archive”, aka a cardboard box. In February, she proudly presented me with three neatly sorted box files of photos, accounts, minutes and more, plus a fourth box file of ‘miscellaneous things’. In that was a copy of our society’s first set of Rules – and with a jolt, I realised that we were turning 100 years this year.What’s more, the August Bank Holiday would be 100 years to the day that the Rules were registered with the Registrar of Friendly Societies – so, of course, we absolutely had to have a party.
It’s strange to look back on century-old maps of Cambridge to see quite how small the city was. Our two sites were originally enormous but have been pared back over time to form one 60 plot site and another with about 100 – less than half what we had 100 years ago.We nearly lost more
to housing, school development and a play area, and in the late 1980s, many plots were simply vacant and unloved. But the late 1990s saw an upsurge in interest and we’re now a thriving society with a waiting list of about 50 people.
It’s also strange to look back at the century-old Rules.Along with 1920s legalese, they talk about dividing society profit amongst the ‘allotmentmen’. One can almost imagine meetings in a community hall, blue-overalled men with flat caps puffing pipes and seriously debating society matters. But what of now? Over the last few years, we’ve been working really hard to develop our committee into an active, committed group who works well together, under the indefatigable stewardship of
our Chair (a thirty-something whirlwind
of organisation).We’ve spent much of
our surplus clearing derelict plots, have introduced card payments for rent, have fixed a few niggles on site which had been deemed ‘too complicated’, have updated our Tenancy Agreement so it’s now actually
legal (gulp!) and – perhaps the biggest challenge – have introduced a proper, regular inspection policy so some rather questionable plots were transferred to new, keen gardeners. All of these factors have helped our society maintain vibrant and active allotment sites – and, of course, credit also goes to our dedicated tenants who have been working their plots.
The August Bank Holiday Monday in Cambridge dawned bright and sunny.We had our Centenary Celebration, and it was a proper shindig. People brought cakes and
side dishes, we had a barbecue, a marquee, bunting and prosecco, welly wanging and
a treasure hunt.The Deputy Mayor of Cambridge unveiled a plaque, Mike Farrell (Chair of the National Allotment Society) gave a brief speech, and people wrote on
a notebook which (along with numerous other odds and ends) was sealed in a time capsule to be opened in 100 years’ time. All told, it was a joyful afternoon’s celebration of a thriving society.
And that, to me, is our place in our community. I know there are some societies
40 | Issue 1 2025 | Allotment and Leisure Gardener