Page 53 - ALG Issue 2 2021

National
Garden
Scheme
Why not share your love of allotments and open under the National Garden Scheme, helping to raise vital funds for nursing and health charities?
The National Garden Scheme has been raising money for nursing and health charities for over 90 years through its opening of private gardens to the public on specific days of the year. What is less well known is that the Scheme includes 39 allotment groups among its hundreds of gardens opening across the country. Here, Debbie Thomson, Publicity Coordinator for the National Garden Scheme in Essex looks at the reasons why more allotment groups might consider joining the Scheme.
In a normal year in Essex, over 100 gardeners choose to open their gates to members of the public on a selected date, or dates, over the summer months. The gardens range from large country house estates to small town gardens. That this happens is down to volunteers for the Scheme, who offer support and publicity for the openings, and to the garden owners themselves who work so hard to make their gardens ready for visitors, providing them with refreshments (when times allow) and sharing their knowledge. Knowing that the money raised goes to National Garden Scheme beneficiaries such as Macmillan Cancer Support, Marie Curie, Hospice UK, Carers Trust and the Queen’s Nursing Institute along with a number of guest charities is a strong driver to those involved.
We have noticed a shift of visitor interest over the last few years to smaller plots including vegetable, wildlife and cut flower gardens. I think there are a number of reasons for this shift.
VISITING A DIFFERENT SORT OF GARDEN
Many of us have small gardens, some no garden at all, and to visit a small space that has been transformed
by the vision of the owner can be
very inspirational. During the recent lockdowns, the desire to grow and learn about fruit and vegetables has increased dramatically. Seeing smaller gardens, allotments and community gardens allows visitors to come away with the confidence that they too
could recreate what they have seen. Importantly, we are now much more aware of the benefits to our mental health that simply visiting a garden can bring.
Talking to allotment holders over the last few months
I have learnt how much they like to share the results of their hard work and how much their wellbeing benefits too
BENEFITS FOR ALLOTMENT HOLDERS
This sounds as if all the benefits are for the visitors. Talking to allotment holders over the last few months I have learnt how much they like to share
the results of their hard work and how much their wellbeing benefits too.
With membership appealing to all age groups, to people from all over the world and to people with physical and mental disabilities the amount they have to offer and to receive in turn is clear.
While there can be reticence surrounding opening to the public, being able to do so under the wing of the National Garden Scheme takes much of the uncertainty away. Having an organisation behind you to support and manage the day on your behalf allows you to spend the day chatting with visitors making the experience more rewarding. The team works
with you to choose the best days to open, give advice on managing visitor numbers and working on the publicity for you – from listing your allotment on the ngs.org.uk website and in the famous ‘yellow book’ (the annual Garden Visitors Handbook) to providing posters for the local area and social media support before the event.
Our aim is to welcome more diverse gardens to the Scheme and to share the benefits to all those involved.
If you are interested in finding out more about opening your allotment please contact Lesley Gamblin, an Assistant County Organiser for the Essex team: lesley.gamblin@ngs.org.uk
Allotment and Leisure Gardener 53