Park Lane Stables, the source of the free manure we have been receiving for the past few years, has been told by its landlord that its lease will not be renewed when it expires in May.

The stables, a registered charity, provides riding lessons and other therapy to people with (and without) disabilities. It is trying to raise £1 million through Crowdfunder to buy the site, although it won’t take any money unless the target is reached.

If you wish to find out more or make a pledge, please click here.

A Happy New Year to all plotholders, and many thanks to those of you who did so much to help others in the year just gone. The level of compassion and community spirit shown on the allotments has been inspiring.

While there are glimmers of hope on the horizon, please do not relax your vigilance in the coming months, especially with this more infectious strain of Covid – keep a social distance, wear gloves when necessary, follow the instructions on the gate and remember we have many vulnerable people on the allotments. Fingers crossed for 2021, stay safe and best wishes for a successful growing season.

Plotholders Committee
January 2021

A new section of dead hedge posts has been erected along the path to the beehive area. There is now more room for cuttings from your allotment, but ONLY stuff from your allotment.

Please DO NOT bring down dead Christmas trees (or anything else) to the allotments, as the days when we needed to fill up the dead hedges quickly are long gone. Instead, use the Council’s free tree collection service, which runs from 4th – 15th January. Click here for details of the council service.

Plotholders Committee
January 2021

Many thanks to all of you who voted in our virtual AGM. There were 73 online replies and one reply via a printed form. The number of votes is higher than for our usual AGMs, where the quorum is 40, so we can be confident that the decisions are valid. These are:

• Approval of the minutes of the 2019 AGM – there were 71 approvals and 3 abstentions.
• Endorsement of the accounts for 2020 – there were 74 endorsements
• Nominations for the 2020-2021 Plotholders Committee – there were 73 votes for and 1 abstention.

The other substantive issue was the incinerator. The Committee has received more than 20 emails and letters in favour of getting a new incinerator, so the question of whether or not to buy an incinerator will be opened up for all plotholders to vote on. We are working out the best way to do this and will be in touch in the near future.

The latest work on the allotment roads is finished. In order to level out the big dip in the ground between the compost toilets and the picnic tables (and to keep the price down), much of the scooped-off soil from the work has been put there.

Please do not park your car there, until further notice. The soil will take several months to settle and become firm enough for cars. Moreover, it has been sown with grass seed.

If you park on the allotments, please make sure that a piece of paper with your plot number on it is clearly visible through your windscreen.

Plotholders Committee
December 2020