What with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s recent series transforming a piece of derelict land in a Bristol estate into a miniature urban smallholding, and the increasing price of food showing no signs of slowing, growing your own food is becoming an ever more attractive proposition. And what better way to do it than with an allotment?

There are so many advantages to having an allotment that it’s hard to understand why more people don’t do it. Not only is it a more cost-effective way of getting your food – allotment rents can be from as little as £5 a year and often don’t go far over £35 a year – leaving you with extra pennies to put aside for a rainy day or give yourself a little treat, but it can also be a great way of meeting new people and sharing tips and knowledge.

Many people are into allotment gardening for the long haul so you can easily track down the more experienced allotmenteers to give you a hand. Whether you are trying to find out what the best varieties of vegetables are that wll do well in the soil type on your plot or want to identify which pesky beasties have been helping themselves to your crops, there will always be somebody to ask. (more…)