Page 52 - ALG Issue 2 2021

Eastern
Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk, Essex, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire
REPRESENTATIVE MENTOR
Mr Ray How TBC
5 Dalys Road, Rochford, Essex SS4 1RA
07720 719224 ray.how@btopenworld.com
Eastern Region report
It is a cold January evening, and we have had more snow and rain around the country than we could wish for. We are still in lockdown, but the future is looking brighter.
We have had our first jabs, and thanks to my daughter, we have been acting as Volunteer Marshalls at a Vaccination Centre. We felt really proud that we could put something back into the community. It was unbelievable, the amount of work and time that has been put into setting up these centres. The planning was amazing.
However, by the time this is published, the sun will be shining and seeds and plants will be thriving on our plots.
I have just received my February copy of ‘Which Gardening’ and there is a very good article on compost for sowing seeds and raising plants. There is a suggestion that, although peat is still being widely used, we should consider moving over to peat-free. This is something that we should be doing.
The Eastern Region is still active, and many associations are doing their bit to improve the image of allotments and their benefits. I hope that during the summer, and certainly during National Allotments Week, we will be able to publicise allotments.
I would like to mention one of our energetic members, Malcolm Few, Chair of Girton Society. Together with several other local Cambridgeshire Chairs, he has been working hard since our 2019 AGM to raise interest in the Cambridgeshire area for joining the Eastern Region Panel. Their view was that Cambridgeshire should have a voice and a seat at the Panel in their own right. The work, that they have been doing, has been authorised at
the Eastern Region Panel 2019 AGM with funds being set aside for an initial meeting of those interested. However, this had been hindered by Covid-19 and the various lockdowns. This has not stopped Malcolm’s energy and he has been contacting various associations
with positive responses. Thanks, Malcolm, for all this hard work.
So, if you are reading this and you have not replied to Malcolm and are interested, please contact him directly or by sending me an email, and I will forward responses on to him.
I have received the usual queries
from local associations and individual members, some with problems and others with success stories. Please keep contacting me. Also, it appears that new allotment sites are on the agendas of some local authorities and developers, which is good news. Please keep persuading them it is good for health, wellbeing and the environment.
Thanks to Di Appleyard, I have been in contact with a representative of the National Garden Scheme and they are interested in inviting allotments to open to the public, to show what
However, by the time this is published, the sun will be shining and seeds and plants will be thriving
we do and what benefits there are in allotments. I think it is a great idea and hopefully 2022 will be the starting point for showcasing our wonderful sites. With that, I would like to close with my usual plea: please remember that all Association Officers are volunteers, and they should be and generally are doing the best for your site. Please support them and do not threaten, abuse, or cause unnecessary upset. One day it maybe you that is on the committee helping, and you would not like to be treated in any other way but fairly.
Happy growing, and here is to a GOOD season. Please support our region and help it grow stronger.
Ray How
Regional Rep Eastern Region
Some members photos...
LOCKDOWN POND...
Tim Bennet sent in this pond picture in response to the article on Biodiversity in ALG 1. This is a new pond created last year during lockdown. We often find frogs and toads on the plot, so thought it would be great to recycle the old sink to create a water habitat for them. On the allotment we already have the other frog/toad habitats mentioned in Kathy’s article.
...AND SOME LOCKDOWN BRASSICAS
Paul Loveday from Girton Allotment Society sent us in a photo of his very healthy- looking brassicas in June last year.
52 Allotment and Leisure Gardener
Welcome to our new members...
Chartridge Allotment Association Feltwell Allotment Tenants Group Great Shelford Parochial Charities Nordelph Allotments Association
11 Individuals 2 Landowners
Easton Parish Council
Epping Town Council Kensworth Parish Council Knebworth Parish Council Little Missenden Parish Council Little Waltham Parish Council