Page 57 - ALG Issue 1 2023

London
London
Welcome to our new members...
East Barking Allotment & Horticultural Association Growing Health Garden London Borough Of Ealing
Station Road Allotment Hayes Members
5 Individuals
REPRESENTATIVE
Terry Dickinson
07789 485331 tdickinson.nas@gmail.com
DEPUTY REP
Paula Owen
DEPUTY REP
Alan Marsh alanmarsh.nas@gmail.com
Calls to 0845 numbers cost 3p (ex VAT) per minute plus your telephone company’s access charge
Water shortage? What water shortage?
We all remember the long, long hot days of the summer with the parched ground, empty water butts, the cracks in the soil and the confused plants. Well, quite a lot of us do.
My own allotment is on a site which has no running water (except for the stream along one boundary) so I and my fellow plotholders do not have to fear the dreaded water bill – whether direct from the water company, or from the local authority/landowner.
However, during our visits to allotments over the past six months throughout London, it was easy to tell the ones with an accessible piped water supply – before the ban, of course.
Simultaneously it was easy to tell the plots with seemingly scant regard for water conservation or reducing the size of the water bill.
If it were up to me, any plot with a shed, greenhouse, polytunnel or canopy or
a combination, would be mandated
to install water collection containers alongside even if the piped expensive water tank was right next door.
It seems almost a social crime to me these days to wilfully not have some sort of rainwater collection system in place. It is free!
If any plotholder is not physically or financially able to, then surely the society/fellow members could rally round.
There are several leaflets on the NAS website about sustainable water collection and irrigation. I particularly like the scheme shown where four adjacent plotholders work together to build and share a rainwater collection point. How sensible and simple is that!
As I write, in early November, the recent wet spell is coming to an end, and we have a few dry days coming. So that is ok then.
But is it? The long-term forecast, at this point, is similar to last year. We had three massive storms in one week in February 2022 – Dudley, Eunice and Franklin. Get ready to welcome Antoni, Betty and Cillian next.
Many of you already collect rainwater in a variety of ingenious and creative ways. We have seen many of your efforts on allotments around London. Absolutely brilliant!
So, looking towards the winter, it seems that a lot of rainwater is on the way. Should we hunker down and sit out the storm? Or should we take advantage
of the coming bounty? After all most people with an opinion claim that rainwater is best for plants in almost all circumstances.
Our recent London Region survey established that there are around 740 allotment sites in London. My favourite comparison is that all these allotments equal about six- and three-quarter Hyde
I find that a staggering amount, just about 15 million gallons of rainwater will take the place of 15 million gallons of highly processed tap water.
I am sure that someone will let me know the cost of 15 million litres of Thames Water tap water.
That seems a conclusive argument that we should all try to increase our rainwater collection this coming winter.
Now is the time to act. The meteorologists are indicating that the bulk of the coming winter rainfall will be in January and February next year. So therefore, those of us who are able, have a couple of months to get busy with the water butts, old dustbins, redundant galvanised household/industrial water tanks, gutters, pipes and much more. Please get busy if you can.
Number one priority – please remember to cover/secure all water tanks to prevent accidents.
We would love to hear of your 2022/23 (ABC) rainwater collection schemes. Just email me with comments and photos and the London Committee
will be delighted to look through your submissions and, perhaps, even come up with a small prize.
Current Parks! demand,
Every allotment has individual plots of varying sizes.
Current demand, long-term waiting lists, evolving growing practices and social changes mean that almost all sites, self- managed and direct let are reducing plot sizes. So, humour me, and let us work on a conservative estimate of a mere one hundred plots per site. Therefore, 740 sites x 100 plots = 74,000 plots.
So, if you accept this rough calculation as a working hypothesis, and we ask each of these plots to add one 200 litre rainwater collector (a 500 litre IBC would be a treat) whether or not they had one or a few to start with, then that would be an additional 14,800,00 litres of rainwater collected. That is a minimum, because if the collected rainwater is syphoned off into other containers even more could be collected. Or perhaps
one for Antoni, one for Betty and one for Cillian.
long-term waiting lists, evolving growing practices and social changes mean that almost all sites, self- managed and direct let are reducing plot sizes
Allotment and Leisure Gardener 57