Now maybe a good time to get an allotment.

1940sGal

Uther wrote: »

How can you say it's rubbish, it may well be reasonable in your area but it's not the same everywhere.

Ours went from £25 the year before last to £40 last year and £75 this year. I think that is too much. you can buy a lot of vegetables for £75. and when you add the cost of seeds, compost etc, I am not convinced you can break even on the cost anymore.

There is no waiting list in my area, there are dozens of empty plots, I expect allotments will be lost to housing development soon.

Again, that does seem an unreasonable increase in price. And who knows where the price increase will stop at? There's no real incentive to get an allotment at that price. I don't think I'd pay it tbh.

forgotmyname

We have turned a overgrown unwanted plot into something that has a chance
of growing stuff though.

So all that work and money wasted.

wellused

What puts people off allotments is that it is hard work and if it isn't hard it is definitely a commitment taking time effort and money, although coming by cheap seeds and compost isn't that difficult. On the upside it does get you out in the fresh air give you exercise and on top of that provide you with fresh healthy fruit and veg which you know how it has been grown. My full plot is £30 per year rising by the rate of inflation each year.

Foxy0810

Uther wrote: »

How can you say it's rubbish, it may well be reasonable in your area but it's not the same everywhere.

Ours went from £25 the year before last to £40 last year and £75 this year. I think that is too much. you can buy a lot of vegetables for £75. and when you add the cost of seeds, compost etc, I am not convinced you can break even on the cost anymore.

There is no waiting list in my area, there are dozens of empty plots, I expect allotments will be lost to housing development soon.

I didn't mean its rubbish like you took it I meant I can't believe the councils have increased the price as much as that over a year will try not say anything next time
And I don't see it as breaking even as such I see it as exercise for the whole family and my kids try a lot more stuff when they've seen it growing and have helped to grow it

forgotmyname

I have a plot at 2 separate allotments.

Missus says i will have to give one up at these prices. I need to try and make it pay for itself.

Need crops that take little room and will grow nomatter what the weather. And something the pests don't like..

Weeds seem to fit the bill, But i dont think she will agree with me.

Uther

Foxy0810 wrote: »

And I don't see it as breaking even as such I see it as exercise for the whole family and my kids try a lot more stuff when they've seen it growing and have helped to grow it

This is a common used argument, and while i agree there is more to growing your own food than the cost, this is a moneysaving forum and I at least find it difficult to invest so much time and money growing the stuff when i could just walk into a farmshop and buy it for less.

I also had plans for raised beds and paths but i cannot justify the cost of these now, especially as I don't know if the price increases will continue at this rate,

The council justify their price increase by claiming that their allotment budget has decreased. I ask what budget, I see no evidence of them spending anything on allotments.

Foxy0810

Uther wrote: »

This is a common used argument, and while i agree there is more to growing your own food than the cost, this is a moneysaving forum and I at least find it difficult to invest so much time and money growing the stuff when i could just walk into a farmshop and buy it for less.

I also had plans for raised beds and paths but i cannot justify the cost of these now, especially as I don't know if the price increases will continue at this rate,

The council justify their price increase by claiming that their allotment budget has decreased. I ask what budget, I see no evidence of them spending anything on allotments.

From what our committee has said at our monthly meetings there is no budget either at our end and because the council HAVE to provide allotments the rent from council plots in our area goes to paying the wage of the allotment officer in the council. Our rent is used up by our committee on our site for various things as we are self managed but they have said that that is what the rents are paying for from council run sites

floss2

Uther wrote: »

...There is no waiting list in my area, there are dozens of empty plots, I expect allotments will be lost to housing development soon.

It may not be possible to become housing land - councils have a legal obligation to provide sites for allotments.

Uther wrote: »

This is a common used argument, and while i agree there is more to growing your own food than the cost, this is a moneysaving forum and I at least find it difficult to invest so much time and money growing the stuff when i could just walk into a farmshop and buy it for less.

Everyone has differing perceptions of moneysaving and what they are happy to do themselves and what they want to buy

The council justify their price increase by claiming that their allotment budget has decreased. I ask what budget, I see no evidence of them spending anything on allotments.

Probably because it is for things like ensuring your water supply & drainage, security / gates / fencing, provision of toilets, provision of tenancy agreements & letters each year, cost of legal & insurance advice & cover, maintenance of sites (hard standing / tarmac for parking, tree removal, hedge maintenance etc).

Foxy0810 wrote: »

From what our committee has said at our monthly meetings there is no budget either at our end and because the council HAVE to provide allotments the rent from council plots in our area goes to paying the wage of the allotment officer in the council. Our rent is used up by our committee on our site for various things as we are self managed but they have said that that is what the rents are paying for from council run sites

We no longer have an allotment officer, our sites are managed by our local Federation and not by the council (who retain ownership of the sites).

mustafa_say_ving

Wow, our waiting list is 3 - 4 years , luckily I got my plot last year ( after waiting 4 years ) , took so much work & time to get it up to scratch as it wasn't maintained at all! It's a half plot & a bit & costs £18 a year ( it pays for itself in soft fruit alone )

valk_scot

I recently gave up my allotment du to ill health but the rent was £30 a year for a plot 40' x 80'. The waiting list is currently a mere ten years long, so when I left my plot was split into two half plots.

I agree, more plotholders leave or allotments become neglected because most new folk totally underestimate the work involved looking after a plot properly. When I took mine on I was told that I should be thinking of at least 10 hours a week work from April to October for a full plot, which is two afternoons at the weekend or 3/4 evenings. I made a point of using no-dig labour saving methods and raised beds, but I found that 10 hors was about right to get full productivity out the plot.

With very few exceptions (the shed, netting, nails ) everything I used on the plot was recycled in some way, mostly scavanged from skips or bought second hand. That kept the costs down considerably. I used the plot bulk buying scheme for seeds, fertilizer and mushroom compost, swapped seeds and young plants and I made a point of making as much bin compost as I could. I kept notes on what I spent in a year and most years I didn't exceed £50 in expenses, plus the £30 rent.

£80 wouldn't go far in the shops for fruit and veg and there's four of us in our family to keep going. I kept rough notes of what I harvested over the year with a rough estimate of what similar would have cost in the shops and it was easily going over the £1000 mark once I included soft fruit, posh veg like sweetcorn and asparagus, herbs, fancy salad mixes etc. And that wasn't using the price of organic produce to base my comparison on, just the average prices of foodstuffs in season. I also traded surplus produce for eggs, jams, honey, chutneys and baking from my neighbours so made more "money" that way. The plot certainly paid it's way money wise! I think that sort of return only comes with experience and effort though, plus keeping start-up costs at a minimum.

It's like everything else in life, effort in = results out, barring acts of God and the weather! And there's no need to buy half the garden centre for an allotment, it's enough that it's functional and tidy rather than have to look like something out of Homes & Gardens.