Page 45 - ALG Issue 1 2025

Welcome to...
16 individuals
Cliffe and Malling Allotment Association Elm Road Allotments
Snodland Town Council
Sutton-at-Hone & Hawley Parish Council Windlesham Parish Council
LAUNCH OF
LOCAL ALLOTMENT GUIDE
On Friday 16th August 2024, during National Allotments Week, Gas House Fields Allotments threw open its gates adorned with National Allotments Week bunting to welcome residents to the allotments and the site was abuzz with activity as wildflower seeds were sown and local children completed the bug hotel.
The South Willesborough and Newtown Community Council’s (SWANCC) Living Workshop Allotment was open to visitors and the official printed guide to the Living Workshop Allotment was launched with an informative and inspiring exhibition attracting new tenants for the waiting
list and hopefully inspiring many more.
This project was the culmination of years
of hard work to develop a previously unused and abandoned 1 perch area into
a model allotment with specific advice for Gas House Fields Allotments; the site has particularly challenging heavy clay soil, is a wide-open site and susceptible to club root and other challenges. During its preparation, 3 workshops were run to discuss digging methods, compost methods and planting.
Volunteers were attracted from the local Duke of Edinburgh Scheme along with volunteer time from SWANCC staff. Year 1 provided a harvest of 100 kilos and Year 2 a harvest of 200 kilos of vegetables, all of which were donated to the local
foodbank for distribution to those who really needed a helping hand.The Allotment Open Day was the harvest forYear 3 and it was wonderful to see so much enthusiasm and excitement harvesting the vegetables. A real “grow your own” experience with over 50lb/23kg of vegetables har vested by visitors and taken away to be enjoyed.
The Living Workshop Guide to Allotmenteering is now available to all new tenants at induction. It provides a 40-page guide with photographs of every step of the process, including tools, composting, winter and spring digging, crop rotation, plot maintenance, health and safety advice including managing water safely to prevent legionnaires and legionella disease, using non-glyphosate weedkiller, and harvesting, along with a clear guide on managing costs
and materials.This was put onto exhibition boards for visitors to view with before and after photos, inspiring new tenants to sign up for an allotment at the Open Day.
SWANCC says:“We were excited to be holding our first open day at Gas House Fields Allotments. All were welcome to pop along for a chat, learn about growing and visit the site. Our allotments are an amazing place that teach people about growing.They encourage healthy living and provide an important biodiverse habitat for wildlife and pollinators”.
Sarah Evans
Community Council Manager South Willesborough and Newtown Community Council
A bench of our own
The Ashdown Vale Allotments is a small, private allotment site set up and managed by community volunteers.
The Allotments form part of a growing trend to include space for community gardening in the designs of new build residential estates.
However, with no one agreed to manage the site, the land was left abandoned and neglected for many years. Eventually, a group of volunteers got together, and the Ashdown Vale Allotment Association was born.
As a private, non-council allotment site, funding to create and improve the site has been a constant challenge.Through
the generosity of the NAS kindly giving us a grant, we were delighted to be able to purchase and install a communal bench for all to enjoy.
We now have a place for our plot holders, children and friends to relax and enjoy being at the allotments for many years to come.
Our new bench is already a much-loved addition to our site, enabling relationships to develop and inspiring the next generation to grow their own.
Georgia Harmsworth, Ashdown Vale Allotments Association Chair
Allotment and Leisure Gardener | Issue 1 2025 | 45