[ArtyPaul]

Hi all,
My name is Paul and I am new here.
I have read all john's books, and thank you John they are just great to read.
So I have now the knowhow, but I am finding it hard to get a allotment local to me.

Dose anybody have any advise that might help speed things up?

Thanks all for any time you might find for me.

Regards Paul

[Rangerkris]

Hi

Make it clear that you dont mind a very over grown plot and that might help you get one quicker it did me.

[Yorkie]

Welcome to the site Paul

Which city do you mean?

Contact your local council lotty officer to get put on the list, ask if there are any parish sites which you can put your name down on.

Some people will advocate pestering the person in charge of the waiting list but if someone did that to me on too frequent a basis then I'd strike them off the list!  Likewise, others may advocate sharing with people who are already plot holders, but that may lead to you queue-jumping which isn't fair on those who play by the rules.

Harsh as it may seem, sometimes you just have to wait your turn 

[JayG]

1) If your city is Sheffield then (favourite rant here!) there are at least 20 plots at the top end of Meersbrook park no more than 3 of which seem to be actively worked (been like this for years but getting worse). I have no idea whether there is a waiting list for these plots; if there is it is a scandal of sorts as they should be let to people who actually want to use them properly. (Maybe a case for a bit of pestering, although I appreciate Yorkie's general point)

2) It is very helpful to add your (approximate) location to your profile; there are still lots of people on here talking about their local growing conditions, weather etc who leave the rest of us to guess the location they are referring to.

 

[savbo]

did you see the feature on GW about people growing in tonne bags of topsoil provided on 'stalled' development sites? must be worth thinking about for urban areas where new allotment sites aren't a realistic option...

[sunshineband]

Hello Paul

I think there is lots of advice gere to answer your question. You can grow veg in containers or your garden if you have one until you get a plot  to make a start

Would you mind just popping into the Welcome to the Forums section to introduce your self, as this will prompt an 'official' welcome from members   

[Babstreefern]

You know, everywhere that I've driven to this last 12 months - Dover, Northumberland, Cumbria, Dorset, Birmingham - the motorways are full of cones where the Councils/ Highways Agency are digging up the roads - why not take a plot where all this is = it seems to me a permenant solution is needed.

[sunshineband]

You know, everywhere that I've driven to this last 12 months - Dover, Northumberland, Cumbria, Dorset, Birmingham - the motorways are full of cones where the Councils/ Highways Agency are digging up the roads - why not take a plot where all this is = it seems to me a permenant solution is needed.

You'd certainly need some soil improvement 

[bigben]

Paul - I got my name down last March and kept checking to see were I was on the list. Starting at 15th for a plot on my local site in Sheffield - (not Meersbrook JayG)- I had risen to 4th by about July. However I have been helping a friend for months on the same site and observed at least 3 plots that were absolute jungles with doors kicked in and massive hedges. I email the allotment people and told them I was happy to take on one of these but would prefer it now when I could have the winter to try to get it into shape. Rather than getting it in April when I would lose a growing season. I got an email just a few days later offering me one of the "jungles".

It might have been that I had reached the top of the list or it might have been that being prepared to take on a plot in dreadful state helped me but you could find that if you turn up at your local site and offer to help out for a season there might be people who are stuggling to stay on top of their plot and would let you work a bit of it. Get your name down and by the time yours comes up you will have gained some good experience. I had two further offers of people who noticed I was busy helping someone but did not have a plot of my own. They offered me a section of their plot they were not able to fully work.

[strangerachael]

Have you had a look at Hugh Fearnly-Wearnly's Landshare Scheme website? I haven't really looked but it sounds like a good idea from what I've heard.  If that doesn't come up with anything you could try advertising locally to find out if anyone has any land they are not using that you could rent on a temporary basis until a permanent allotment comes up. I found a small plot from an ad in the post office window - it was an old lady who wanted someone to look after her garden as she couldn't do it herself. Worth asking around.