Allotments : for fools or horses ?!

JustAThought

I got an allotment from fingal county council after years of a wait : what do people think of them & those that have them? New wave hippie chic, breeding ground for illicit crop growers, or just for wanna be fogeys?:cool:

arybvtcw0eolkf

I'd seriously love one.

I love being outdoors and could imagine me and the two dogs just working a little plot, then chill'n - the three of us, no AH or martial arts.. No jogging to meet fitness tests or hassles with women.

Switch off the mobile phone and listen to BBC Radio ONE or the World Service on the transistor radio while I ready my pipe

I think I'd be happy as a pig in sh*t.

Jaxxy

I honestly had no idea that they existed outside the east-end of London.

Seriously though, grow veggies. Would be cool to have your own fresh veggies.

lastlaugh

Marianna Wooden Semifinal wrote: »

I'd seriously love one.

I love being outdoors and could imagine me and the two dogs just working a little plot, then chill'n - the three of us, no AH or martial arts.. No jogging to meet fitness tests or hassles with women.

Switch off the mobile phone and listen to BBC Radio ONE or the World Service on the transistor radio while I ready my pipe

I think I'd be happy as a pig in sh*t.

Well I'm sure you won't have any fear of that with your new Avatar!

Mr.Biscuits

If they're good enough for Arthur Fowler, then they're good enough for me.

Abi

JustAThought wrote: »

I got an allotment from fingal county council after years of a wait : what do people think of them & those that have them? New wave hippie chic, breeding ground for illicit crop growers, or just for wanna be fogeys?:cool:

Always wanted one. when I did a bit of research on it, the wait put me off. Hope you enjoy it. Theres something nice about being able to use your own produce.

BornToKill

Marianna Wooden Semifinal wrote: »

I love being outdoors and could imagine me and the two dogs just working a little plot, then chill'n - the three of us, no AH or martial arts.. No jogging to meet fitness tests or hassles with women

Prepare to be disappointed. Dogs make useless gardeners. No opposable thumbs.

Giselle

Marianna Wooden Semifinal wrote: »

I'd seriously love one.

I love being outdoors and could imagine me and the two dogs just working a little plot, then chill'n - the three of us, no AH or martial arts.. No jogging to meet fitness tests or hassles with women.

I think I'd be happy as a pig in sh*t.

Just get a shed for your private use. Cheap, convenient, peaceful. A haven if you will.

All the tranquility of an allotment without the muck, or the wait, or the work, or the damage to image, or the hassle of getting there, or the hassle of guilt for not bothering to get there after waiting for years for it, or the stress of waiting years, getting it, laying down a crop of whatever you fancy, the weather turning unseasonably warm/cold/a meteor hitting it, and all your crops failing leaving you crying into your hands and asking your dogs 'WHY?'. Its a stress filled situation that you're better off without really.

GoldFour4

I don't see why anyone wouldn't want one.

Its so satisfying to eat something you grew from a seed and carefully nurtured to your exact specifications rather then tescos

Dyr

Could ya not grow stuff in the garden? if ye had a garden

Abi

Bambi wrote: »

Could ya not grow stuff in the garden? if ye had a garden

Even if the OP does, there are variants to growing your own produce. The soil, aspect, etc.

byhookorbycrook

people will tell you of all the money you will save, to be honest, cash-wise it will cost you as much, but taste wise there is no comparison. Slugs are bástards though.

gk5000

Why do you care what others think about them?

I have one. Love it...mostly...keeps me sane.
It's actually cheaper to buy food in Tesco,but don't let that stop you; and it's cheaper than joining a gym. But they are a considerable commitment of work and weeding/watering.

My advise is
- just start grow stuff and don't bother with a big up front investment in time/money with wooden borders etc.
- remember that to be purist organic is very difficult, and best left to the fanatics.... think of it like religious fanatics
- follow a book if you don't know what you are doing

..enjoy:)

ThePower11

gk5000 wrote: »

Why do you care what others think about them?

I have one. Love it...mostly...keeps me sane.
It's actually cheaper to buy food in Tesco,but don't let that stop you; and it's cheaper than joining a gym. But they are a considerable commitment of work and weeding/watering.

My advise is
- just start grow stuff and don't bother with a big up front investment in time/money with wooden borders etc.
- remember that to be purist organic is very difficult, and best left to the fanatics.... think of it like religious fanatics
- follow a book if you don't know what you are doing

..enjoy:)

Whats that got to do with the price of turnips :pac:

gk5000

ThePower11 wrote: »

Whats that got to do with the price of turnips :pac:

the excercise... digging out in the open air - nicer & cheaper than the gym (costs me €100 for the allottment)

P.S. Be careful with you back.
Seriously....dirty your knees and don't bend too much - keep one hand on the ground or on a spade when weeding

Pj!

Marianna Wooden Semifinal wrote: »

I'd seriously love one.

I love being outdoors and could imagine me and the two dogs just working a little plot, then chill'n - the three of us, no AH or martial arts.. No jogging to meet fitness tests or hassles with women.

Switch off the mobile phone and listen to BBC Radio ONE or the World Service on the transistor radio while I ready my pipe

I think I'd be happy as a pig in sh*t.

Just go fishing.

admiralofthefleet

id love to have one. my missus's uncle has one in swords and i love looking at it whenever we are up there

self sufficiency is the way forwards imo

Stiffler2

Ye with the F***ng price of cigarettes now I wouldn't mind getting a plot and starting a few tobacco plants ?

That's legal isn't it ??

or is this plant banned as well ?

F***n whole world is upside down, who makes these rules anyway.

sensibleken

a great idea. Id absolutely love one but you really have to put the time into it, which i simply dont have. an uncle has one and i get a great deal of veg from him when he's harvesting. tastes 10 times better than supermarket stuff

Batsy

There's a big allotments near me. My dad used to own one and he grew things like tomatoes, sprouts and potatoes there.

It was much better than going out and buying them.

SeaFields

Made an attempt to grow my own vegetables last year. We were given a small corner of a field by the girlfriends father to try and grow the dinner.

Grew a massive crop of spuds. They lasted us ages but lost about 1/3 to slugs.
Still have onions, a lot of onions - simple to grow. Grew radishes as they only take a month to grow from seed. They didn't seem to taste of anything tho but it was nice to have something for your efforts after a few weeks. My carrots never materialized, my peas didn't either and my lettuce was eaten. Cabbage went well too tho.

Its a learning curve and I cant wait to give it a go again this year.

Good luck OP.

LighterGuy

I think it would be fun to have an allotment
I grew some potatoes in my back garden last year. Just messing around really. They turned out great. But I also heard last year was a great harvast for potatoes.

Op,
grow something in it. I suggest potatoes. Easy to grow.
If I had any decent sized area to grow things. I would grow loads of potatoes and sell them :pac: ... you always see guys going around with white vans selling fruit and veg. They are just normal joes getting stuff from the coop or what not.
I think it would be fun. Wouldnt be doing it for the money, as you wouldnt make a lot.

average_runner

I have an allotment and its a private one.

Starting up costs money, but for the years after that its grand.
Also no dogs are allowed on allotments.

Still eating the veg and potatoes from last summer harvest and currently have leeks, turnip, cabbages, carrots, kurly Kale and parsnips in the allotment to eat.

Great form of exercise but there is a good bit of work to them.

Plenty of private ones around and where we have our's our farmer is extending it. Cost is 150 for the year 15m x 7m

OldGoat

I have one in Saint Annes Park (Dublin), 10 minutes cycle from home. So far I've discovered that I'm really good at growing weeds. Can't wait to try again next season.