The big picture of our Allotment life and how everything fits together

In this video I explain why I started an Allotment, what it means to me and how the three plots work together as a little Allotment empire.

In brief, I retired a couple of years ago due to ill health and I got an allotment to fill the time that I’d previously spent working in the last few years, 4 hours a day, 4 days a week. Not only did the allotment fill the time wonderfully, but it pretty much cured me, or at least kicked the auto-immune condition I suffered with into remission. I put it down to working in the soil, being in the fresh air and huge amounts of fruit and veg!

Over the last two years we’ve acquired three plots, I got mine first, then Debbie (my wife) and recently Jennie, one of my daughters got hers. We manage all three as a family and as one big plot. They feed us and lots of friends and family.

My plot provides the leafy greens and most of the root crops (except potatoes). Jennie’s plot provides the beans, onions, garlic, potatoes, squash and brassicas. Debbie’s is an ornamental kitchen garden, with a little of everything as well as lots of flowers and an orchard and berry garden.

We also have a kitchen garden at home, that provides the herbs, lots of soft fruit and convenience foods, like carrots, beets, chard, and a few lettuce.