Allotments and Vandalism?

Our council, have for the first time in 50 years decided to provide allotments
Only these are within each area of the town, Not on the outskirst like most towns

Mine would not be too bad I would hope as it would be in a residential areas, though others that may be the only ones left available are in the town itself
ie between the town centre and a night club, or between the last housing and the town centre

I would be worried of putting in all the work only to find it destroyed the next morning or the shed burnt out
The ones on the outskirts of the other town are about 20 minutes drive away by car,only there is a long four or more year waiting list, and all the allotment holders there seem to be in good nick for their age (I keep an eye on the Obituraris column in the local press)

Do any of you allotment holders have much vandalism ?

Jack McHammocklashing

 

We have large garden not allotment but we do have vandalism, we live in the croutryside and the attitude is, what's your's is mine, what's mine is not your's, that looks nice, trash it

 

to be honest this is one of the things thats putting me off getting on our allotment list - theres a long waiting lists & the Town Council are looking at some spare ground by the local housing estate as a possible extra site. Theres no way I would leave anything there overnight, & I have little doubt that anything that I actually managed to grow would disappear once it got close to being ready.

 

I think if you worry about anything too much then you wont do it, equipment is an expensive thing to lose, and a big outlay especially when your starting up, one solution would be to ask the council to provide a steel container so everyone has a key and can lock there higher valued equipment in it, and store it safely, I would be worried more about people steeling your grown veg and flowers now days, I read its on the increase as prices sore in the shops, you think about it just a few onions and celery and some spuds, and there waling away with £10 already, and if they do that on a regular bases it will soon add up

 

Rule 1. Never take anything down to the allotment you are not willing to lose.

Rule 2. Plant twice as much as you need.

Rule 3. Don't get depressed when it's gone.

Rule 4. Don't expect any 'backup' from the council or the police.

Cheers, happy digging, Tony.

 

I have landed the contract to maintain the garden at a pub in our village (a minute's walk from my home)....

the pub closed down approx a year ago, and the new owners have been renovating the pub (it's a grade A listed) ... the pub opens next month and I have started on the lawns this week

there are very few plants and shrubs left in the beds .... they have all been nicked .... and that pub had really nice plants/shrubs

even the empty hanging baskets with the wall brackets are gone

 

none of this is making me any keener on putting my name down - infact Im thinking about putting razorwire on the wall alonside my garden & equiping some pigeons with laser guns to keep the riff-raff out...

 

After many years of being on my own, on my allotment site and growing an impenetrable hedge of brambles, the Allotment association is making a come back.
They want access and want to create a gap in my hedge so they can get through.

This will also allow any Tom, Dick or Harry close access to the rear of my garden.
Cant say I'm keen on the idea but I cant stop them.

Its happened in the past, all very keen for a short time, then they walk away and I'm left fighting off the kids.

 

2 years ago I gave back my allotment just for this reason , so much work and money spent to find all my crop destroid for no reason , just for stupid fun , my first greenhouse was stolen and the second was just burned for fun , my allotment was the closest to the road and easy access ...the only thing I really miss is all the nice peoples there .

 

If the allotments are between the drinking quarters and the residential areas, then you'd expect that around kicking out time, the coppers will be out in force in that area. Therefore the allotments should be fairly safe.

In Redcar there are several allotment sites. Years and years ago, my dad had one of the ones just out of town. There there was occasional theft and vandalism. There was no logical reason for it, the perpetrators had no reason to be passing, they must have gone there specifically to cause bother.

Two of the sites here are right in town. One is right on a main road very close to the town centre and right in the heart of the main residential area. Another is just a few hundred yards away, still in a residential area, but with a park (that is not locked at night and is frequented by local youths) running right through the middle of the site. From what I can gather, neither site gets much bother. They are all well kept, but I don't know anyone that has one so I can't say for sure if they are good, but my point is they are so accessible to yobs, yet people still look after them, and when you walk past you see good crops growing, including stuff that takes most of a year to grow. It works here, and Redcar has its fair share of bother, so I guess it can work anywhere.

 

I think that although the replies are what I expected, If I grab one now whilst they are available, then keep it just ticking over for a year with tatties and onions, to show I am working at it, I will have an allotment
IF it turns out I am not up to keeping such a large plot physically, or vandalism is too severe then I can opt OUT Rather than never been able to opt IN
I was not really into a large garden until I created what I have now and realise it is too small to be of any use other than a basic hobby to be occupied rather than to produce

I commence ten days pre retirement leave on Friday so I will go down and stake my claim on Monday
I do have a very secure steel trunk, that I can secure into the ground, and use good quality padlocks that I managed to glean from my previous employer (too many key holders lost their master key ( CHUBB ) so company replaced locks, and ditched the ones that were compromised)

Thanks for the input I know what I thought it would be like confirmed so I will give it a go, only a couple of years rent and some work to lose

Jack McH

 

PUT A Deranged Dogs home Dog up there Jack the rottwiler type or the mother in law and some razor wire its sad nothing is safe from the youth of today we never did that kind of stuff as kids i was happy down the brook on a rope swing with my

 

I have a couple of tips for help against theft and vandalism, I wont write it here where theives and vandals may read it, but will happily reply to anyone who messages me for the info, it's just basic stuff though.

Steve...

 

I've had problems with people coming onto my plot & leaving trays of Cabbages & Leeks. Someone even left a bag of Magic Mushrooms Do I look like a Hippy?

 

Err yes, Well unusual sort of

Jack McH