Allotment and Leisure Gardener Issue No 3 • 2011 INSIDE THIS ISSUE PAGE 20 GARDENERS’ WORLD LIVE PAGE 37 KEEPING CHICKENS PAGE 19 FLOWERS PAGE 29 YOU AND YOUR ALLOTMENT National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners PROTECT PROMOTE PRESERVE £2 24th –25th September 2011 A Splendid Mix for Food &Gardening Lovers Celebrity Chef Gino D’ Acampo Box office 01684 584924 www.threecounties.co.uk ASSISTANCE DOGS ONLY autumn show ad Allotment and Leisure.indd 1 7/7/11 11:37:16 2 Contact details Allotment and Leisure Gardener Issue 3 • 2011 Head Office Secretary: Mrs D McDaid Administration: Mrs K Maher, Mrs E McInally & Mr I Blaikie, Ms Rakhi Arora 19 20 Legal Advisor: Mrs Liz Bunting Officers of the Society President: Mr C Nickerson Chairman: Mr A Rees MBE Vice Chairman: Mrs S Fleetwood Treasurer: Mr D Rawlings Local Authority Representative Cllr Mrs J Wood Cllr Mr J Marr Standing Orders Committee Acting Chairman: Mr I Crawford Mr P Lofts, Mr M Merrill PLEASE NOTE: NSALG enquiries should be made to: 29 37 Head Office, O’Dell House, Hunters Road, Corby, Northants NN17 5JE Tel: 01536 266576 Fax: 01536 264509 email: [email protected] web: www.nsalg.org.uk Design, Print and Advertising Sales Crest Publications 20, Moulton Park Office Village, Scirocco Close, Northampton, NN3 6AP Tel: 01604 495495 email: [email protected] www.crestpublications.com Front cover Alan Titchmarsh and Christine Brown at Gardeners World Live. 49 61 SUBMISSIONS ADVICE Letters and articles for publication should be sent to: NSALG Head Office CLOSING DATES: Issue 4 2011: 20th September 2011 Magazine Submissions: All submissions MUST be typewritten and sent by post or email to Head Office. Articles should be limited to 600 words. We will wherever possible include articles that are sent in by post but cannot guarantee their inclusion. When submitting articles, please provide name, addresss, phone number and e-mail address if applicable. If submitting by email, the subject line should read ‘NSALG magazine’. You and Your Allotment – Photographs and images: In this issue… profile on Avril Buck ............................29 Regions & reps ........................................4 Mike Thurlow Answers your questions ...30 Ideally your images should be of good resolution, 300dpi (photos taken with mobile Chairman’s Comments ............................5 Report of the 2011 AGM .......................32 phones are not good enough quality). Send Secretary’s Report ...................................6 Chicken Keeping for Beginners ..............37 photos via email preferably or originals in the Information ..............................................7 Garden Sheds – How do you treat yours? post (photocopies / printed copies will not Legal .......................................................8 ..............................................................40 be used). Insurance ................................................9 AROUND THE REGIONS If you need help with any of the Book Reviews ...................................... 12 Northern ................................................47 above please call Jayne at Crest FEATURES Yorkshire ...............................................50 Publications on: 01604 495495 or email: Growing organically on your allotment ...15 North West ............................................52 [email protected] Seven Ages of Allotment Holding ...........17 East Midlands ........................................55 NSALG Management Committee, Officers, Editor and Publishers, do not necessarily agree with the views expressed by contributors It’s not all about allotments!....................19 West Midlands .......................................58 to this magazine and do not accept any responsibility for any errors in transmission in the subject matter of this publication. All Growing for Gold! ..................................20 Eastern ..................................................59 advertisements are included in good faith and NSALG Management Committee, Officers, Editor and Publishers, cannot therefore accept National Allotment Garden Trust ............22 Wales ....................................................62 any responsibility for any services offered by advertisers. No part of this publication may be reproduced without express written permission of Annual Scottish Allotments Conference .24 Competitions/Giveaway ����������������40/44 the Society and Publishers. 3 Regions and reps NORTHERN Northumbrland and Tyne and Wear • County Durham • Cleveland • Cumbria • Scotland Mr Peter Horrocks 6 Moor Road North, Gosforth, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE3 1AD Tel: 0191 285 6412 Email: [email protected] YORKSHIRE North Yorkshire • West Yorkshire • South Yorkshire • Parts of Humberside Peter Horrocks Regional Rep Mr Tony Heeson 25 The Broadway, Balby, Doncaster DN4 9BS Mr Tony Heeson Regional Rep Tel: 01302 851557 • Email: [email protected] NORTH WEST Lancashire • Greater Manchester • Merseryside • Cheshire Mr David Morris 54 Princes Boulevard, Wirral, Merseryside CH63 5LW Tel: 0151 512 3882 • Email: [email protected] EAST MIDLANDS Lincolnshire • Nottinghamshire • Derbyshire • Leicestershire • Northamptonshire Mr D Morris Mrs Shirley Fleetwood Regional Rep 1 Veronica Drive, Carlton, Nottingham NG4 3QS Tel: 0115 952 6920 • Email: [email protected] Mrs S Fleetwood Regional Rep WEST MIDLANDS Staffordshire • West Midlands • Warwickshire • Shropshire • Herefordshire • Worcestershire Mr Maurice Lander 4 Franciscan Road, Coventry CV3 6HB Tel: 02476 502362 • Email: [email protected] EASTERN Buckinghamshire • Norfolk • Suffolk • Cambridgeshire • Bedfordshire • Hertfordshire • Essex and parts of London Mrs Karen Kenny Mr Maurice Lander 197 Cauldwell Hall Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP4 5DA Regional Rep Tel: 07712 766916 • Email: [email protected] Karen Kenny SOUTH EAST Regional Rep Kent and parts of London • Surrey • Sussex Mr Peter Neame 46 Sunnyhill Road, Herne Bay CT6 8LU Tel: 01227 362321 or 07742915297 Email: [email protected] SOUTHERN Oxfordshire • Berkshire • Wiltshire • Gloucestershire • Hampshire • Isle of Wight Mr Tim Cann 8 Nicholas Avenue, Old Marston, Oxford OX3 0RN Mr Peter Neame Tel: 01865 202104 • Email: [email protected] Regional Rep SOUTH WEST Mr Tim Cann Dorset • Avon • Somerset • Devon • Cornwall Regional Rep Mr Alan Cavill 28 Highfield, Taunton, Somerset TA1 5JG Tel: 07748 178964 • Email: [email protected] WALES Glamorganshire • Gwent • Dyfed • Powys • Clywd Mr Allan Rees MBE 77 Eustace Drive, Bryncethin, Bridgend, Mid Glamorgan CF32 9EX Tel: 01656 721865 • Email: [email protected] Allan Cavill Regional Rep 4 Mr A Rees MBE Regional Rep Head Office Chairman’s Comments Before embarking on my quarterly rave, I hope that I speak a Member of Parliament? We will let you for everyone within the NSALG in sending our best wishes to know in the next edition who we have Deborah Burn who is leaving her position as Project Manager secured. As the AGM is always the first on the Allotment Regeneration Initiative to embark on a Master’s Saturday in June, next year falls on the Degree. Deborah is taking an MA in Sociology and Social Research 2nd. With this being an extra public Methods at the University of Newcastle and will go on to complete holiday, it was suggested that we hold it a PhD. Deborah has obtained academic research funding for this, on the 9th June. which proves that the allotment movement is going from strength to strength. Good luck from us all with your future studies and if we International Meeting Luxembourg can assist you in anyway we will be more than happy to help. Since I have been attending these meetings I have found that as we were a little stale so was the It has been an extremely hectic year with the Government trying to international. Things have changed and although some member influence change. Thanks to all who assisted in sending objections states do not attend, it is interesting to note that there are similar to the Department for Communities and Local Government problems throughout Europe. One country has renamed the (DCLG) in relation to the Statutory Duty Review. We are constantly community gardens and called them square gardens and have told that strength comes from numbers; this is true and we, as taken them under the protection of allotments legislation; this an organisation, are always at the forefront of protecting what is may be a way in which we can promote alternative gardening our right to have an allotment. Other like minded organisations on allotments within the present legislation. Not by calling them should be aware that there may be moves from other agencies square gardens but perhaps using the co-operative part of the to influence changes to allotment provision in the future. I urge allotment acts! everyone to be aware of what is happening locally and nationally. Remember – united we stand, divided we fall – everyone involved I am pleased to say that those in attendance were very congratulatory in allotments must work together to fight the good fight. about our website but in particular our magazine. The member states do take an interest in what we do and again one country has asked There is a strong demand for allotments and Community Gardens for our seed scheme details, which I will be passing on to Kings. do have a part to play but they are not allotments as defined within the legislation and do not fulfil the same role. All too often During a discussion with the French delegate I was made