Shropshire Star

It's harvest time - How does your Shropshire garden grow?

You reap what you sow – and for allotments holders across Shropshire and Mid Wales this is a glorious time of year.

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Months of hard labour, often in biting wind or driving rain, are now being rewarded with a harvest to be proud of.

If you walk through an allotment this time of year you are sure to be greeted by a colourful array of seasonal fruit and vegetables including bean shoots standing tall, hordes of potatoes, carrots, leeks, cabbages and onions, and even ripe and juicy tomatoes and cucumbers ready to be enjoyed by the hardworking growers who started with just a seed.

Produce such as tomatoes can be grown in pots in your own garden as well as on an allotment

Can't get your hands on an allotment plot? There's plenty you can do in your own back yard, quite literally.

Gardener Frank Eskrett says people stuck on an allotment waiting list should not to be disheartened and instead take matters into their own hands.

He said: "You don't need to have an allotment to grow vegetables. You can grow them in a small garden, you can grow in pots, I have flowers growing on my shed roof. It's just about making use of the space you've got.

"If you've only got a hard surface like concrete use pots, use any containers you have, put up shelves on your wall, use your shed roof if you have one, there are ways of growing your own and the same applies if you have no space at all, again use pots and containers where you can." Mr Eskrett, 68, whose garden measures at around 40ft by 25ft, said: "I'm mostly growing flowers at the moment but I could easily grow enough vegetables to last the winter and also to eat during the growing season as well."

In the past Mr Eskrett has had an allotment plot but decided to give it up and now prefers to grow in his own space at home in Gobowen.

He said: "It's right in my own back garden which is ideal. I gave up the plot because I was having to carry gallons of water at a time. It's easier for me having it in my garden."

For Mr Eskrett the feeling of self-satisfaction in growing his own produce is a big reason behind why he does it but also the taste and knowing exactly how his vegetables got to his plate.

"Producing your own tastes better but not only that, you govern what you put in the ground, for example you choose what you spray. You may not be getting identical potatoes but that doesn't matter what matters is you're growing produce," he said.

Innovation is also key in Mr Eskrett's gardening as he uses any sort of pot, container or barrel he can get his hands on.

He said: "Everything has a purpose, I use every available cannister, pot or barrel I can have off someone. Making your shelves is easy and you can even make your own greenhouse using wood and plastic sheeting."

After months of care, attention and graft, a feeling of self-satisfaction is in the air for those who have dedicated their spare time to tending to their produce.

The exhilaration of picking your own fruit and veg is feeding a hunger for allotments that is leading to long waiting lists in some parts of the region.

A visit to Bowbrook Community Allotments near Shrewsbury gives an indication of the dedication that goes into growing your own.

Standing proudly next to an assortment of self grown produce, David Baguley, 69, said he could grow enough vegetables from his 40ft by 30ft half plot to last him the winter.

He said: "It's a great feeling seeing your hard work pay off.

"Growing your own produce is deeply satisfying and from the plot I have it should last me more or less the whole winter which includes preserving, freezing and making soup."

However Mr Baguley's reasons for feeling pleased with his plot have got more to do with just his veg.

He and others down on the allotment reckon it is good for your health, both mental and physical.

Malcolm Mollart, 64, chairman of Bowbrook Community Allotments, explained: "As well as the satisfaction of growing your own produce, there's the therapeutic aspect because the allotments are such a calming place.

"There's also a feeling of community here, it's a very companionable place.

"You get people giving others pointers or if someone has a crop failure people tend to share what they've grown.

"There's so much good and enjoyment to be had from growing your own."

Other benefits of tending to an allotment include the health ones as the plots offer plenty of exercise and as much fresh air as you can expect.

This time of year the influx of seasonal harvest goods means the advantages of allotments are even more obvious to those who don't grow their own because those who do have more than enough to share out with the local community

Those who have a plot at Bowbrook share out any of their surplus goods with the nearby Severn Hospice, as well as elderly residents.

Mr Baguley said: "It's great because the fresh produce brings joy to others too. One elderly couple who live near me danced around with joy when they received their first load of beans – and they're aged in their 80s!"

Mr Mollart said harvest time at the allotments were a particularly joyful time due to people feeling thankful for the hard work they have put into their plots which they and other see in the produce grown.

Plot holders and their family members inShrewsbury also come together during the harvest period to celebrate the autumn season, where the sheds are decorated, a pumpkin competition is held and produce is enjoyed.

David Baguley, Di Higgs and Malcolm Mollart with their produce

It is common end-of-term theme for allotments around the country – harvest time a time for coming together, reflecting on the season and celebrating the crop.

Across the Shropshire border at Amblecote allotments, Amblecote, Stourbridge, harvest is used to host a scarecrow festival.

Elsewhere music events are held and open days invite people to come and find out what happens on an allotment.

Events being held at allotments mirror the Christian celebration of harvest, which celebrates the annual miracle of the journey of food from seed to plate.

Often during harvest celebrations, freshly grown produce and canned goods are collected, sometimes decorated and put on display in churches and shared with those in need in the community. It is this sense of community, together with a greater awareness of cost following the recession, that is helping allotments boom.

The National Allotment Society says an average of 52 people are waiting for every 100 plots, although waiting times vary widely. Currently Bowbrook Community Allotments, which has 93 plots, has a waiting list of around 30 people, while at Ludlow's Mill Street allotments, there are more than 40 people on the waiting list, waiting for one of 23 plots to come free.

Di Higgs tending to her allotment plot in Shrewsbury

Gatacre Allotments in Oswestry, which has 66 plots, is also in demand as it has more than 10 people on its waiting list.

Although these waiting lists are frustrating us Shropshire folk should count ourselves lucky as those living in north London have a staggering 40 year wait to get their hands on a plot of their own.

Camden has 200 plots for which people pay up to £272 a year.

There are 1,000 names on the waiting list, which was closed years ago.

Such is the appetite for allotment plots that some have taken the situation into their own hands, with one strip of abandoned land off the High Street, Wem, being turned into a plot.

TV gardener Alan Titchmarsh this week jumped into a controversial debate sparked by former co-star Charlie Dimmock, who suggested allotments should be carved up to allow more people to grow their own vegetables.

Her comments sparked a storm of protest from people who already have plots and who say they are unhappy at trhe prospect of having their land trimmed to help others get gardening. Dimmock, who starred alongside Titchmarsh in the long-running BBC series Ground Force, said British allotments, which are traditionally 250 square metres, or roughly the size of a tennis court, could easily be split into four.

"A lot of plots are way too big for the average couple and if you halved them and halved them again, that would be more practical for many people," she said

Titchmarsh agrees, saying it was "the simplest solution" to reducing waiting lists and that a smaller patch could actually benefit would-be gardeners new to the pastime.

John Cobbold on the land in Wem which is being used as an allotment

"It cannot be beyond the wit of local councils to provide half and quarter-sized plots as well as full-sized ones, according to demand," he said.

"That way, waiting lists could be reduced and more people introduced to the delights and challenges of growing their own food."

But Karen Kenny, president of the National Allotment Society, is not impressed with the idea.

She said: "It appears that Miss Dimmock is of the opinion that allotments are for doing a bit of gardening and growing a few exotic fruit and veg. Not so. The standard size plot of 250 square metres is specifically the size needed to feed a family of four for 12 months.

"Allotment gardeners feel quite strongly about it.

"That's what allotments are for and a quarter of a plot is not going to support a family."

There's always a chance to have a break during a busy day

Sean James Cameron, who presents The Horticultural Channel, said the problem was not the size of the plots but the way in which local councils managed them.

"Charlie Dimmock should stick to dealing with garden ponds and refrain from commenting on subjects which she clearly knows nothing about," he said.

But Titchmarsh said that while 250 square metres of earth might suit "keen and accomplished growers", those with less time on their hands or with less experience would actually benefit from starting with a smaller patch.

It would be "much less daunting and less likely to be weed-infested within the year," he added.

But whatever the arguments on the size of allotments, it would seem the number of families looking to live the Good Life and produce their own fruit and veg like Tom and Barbara in the 1970s classic BBC comedy is still on the rise.

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