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The Allotment
Mar. 16th, 2021 09:14 amLast year when Corona came to party, I focused some of my energy into making my balcony into a lovely garden again, but there's only so much you can do with 3 square meters (and still keep a little place in between to put your feet). I decided to look for an allotment. I love gardening, and despite giving away all of my seeds to my father in law a few years back, I keep coming back to it.
There was an association renting out allotment gardens quite close to home: Volkstuinvereniging Genderbeemd, wedged between the Gender our neighbourhood was named for, and the drainage canal. It's about 15 minutes walking distance from home, and if I cycle down the Hurksestraat where my work is, I get there as well (it's kind of a weird triangle between work, home and the allotments).
After I sent in my down payment to even be considered for the waiting list, I received an e-mail on June 29th 2020 that I was 15th on the waiting list. I figured that would mean it would be quite a while before I would even get anywhere near a garden. I figured people who had a garden there would keep it for many years, and they would only stop if they became too old or moved away.
Imagine my surprise when I got the e-mail two weeks ago: a couple of gardens had freed up and they would invite people from the waiting list to come view them. The people who showed up would be able to pick a garden according to their place on the waiting list.
I figured if I didn't show up for the showing, I would definitely not have a garden, so I replied that I would be there.
I knew where the allotments were of course, but I had no idea where "gate 14" they spoke of might be. Luckily someone was already waiting at one of the gates and we figured it out together. There were six people coming to look, and two of them were spouses, so there were actually just four people vying for the allotments. And apparantly, there were also four allotments to look at. I was psyched! This meant that whatever happened, I would get an allotment that day!
The first one we looked at was 100 square meters and I was a little dismayed by its layout, running alongside a narrow path; and its size as well. 100 square meters seemed so large! The second garden was even larger, at 135 square meters. It had a shed and a 'cage' and it came with netting you could put over the cage to keep the birds off your berry bushes. If you chose this allotment, you'd have to pay 375 euro for the shed and things that were already on it.
The third one was in a whole different part, further north-east, and allotment number four was directly adjacent to it. The vibe in this part of the garden was so much better, and I knew that if I could choose, I would choose one of these two. It felt right.
They were still pretty large, and the third allotment we looked at had a knee-high fence you could put greenhouse windows over (but they were all missing) or you could fill them up to create a raised bed. There was a little weird corner with some bushes on the other side of the path.
And the fourth garden was 105 square meters, a long stretch of roughly four meters wide, running towards the Gender. It was completely bare, no shed or greenhouse or anything I would have to buy before I could start. The path running between allotment 3 and 4 was fenced on the side of number 4, so people couldn't step into your garden, and there was a gate allowing access on the short side of the garden.
Mustafa and his wife were the first ones to pick. They chose the largest garden, with the shed and the 'cage'. And then I could pick! I was surprised at that, I really hadn't expected this. I chose number four happily and with a big smile on my face. The young couple, Freke and Rinze, who could choose after me picked the third one right on the other side of the path and we exchanged phone numbers.
So now I have an allotment!
I'm ecstatic and a little intimidated. The amount of planting space is twice the size of my apartment! Slowly, as the weekend progressed, I realised I would no longer have limitations as to what crops I could grow. On a balcony, growing potatoes is a waste of time - a whole season just to grow a single dinner of tiny potatoes in a pot? No thanks. And suddenly the plants that would go for world domination are an option as well: cucumbers, melons and squash.
Although the Gender is right at the end of my garden, I was already warned it is mostly stagnant (and thus, not suitable to water from especially in hot summers), but we can take water from the canal on the other end of the strip of land. There is even a pump we can borrow from the association for this, for when you don't relish walking 50 meters with heavy buckets.
That's where my mind went instantly: rain water collection and retention. A shed or greenhouse to sow seeds indoors and to store tools dry would also allow for rainwater collection, a good start. Plant schemes were farthest from my mind!
Tricky thing about getting a shed or greenhouse is also: how to anchor this properly so it doesn't blow away in the first storm? I have NO clue how to even do this. So I called my mom, and she said "Ah, that's no big deal. You just dig a trench, mason a little wall, and build the greenhouse on that. We did that for our greenhouse, it works like a charm." Apparently you can use the brick wall as a foundation and bolt a greenhouse on top of it. Who knew? (I'm already learning so much!)
Slowly I started on a little list: a greenhouse and a shed, double rainbarrows, a little tiled surface to park my bike on, two chairs and a little table. On the next page I wrote a list of tools I will need: a spade, a tined fork, a hoe, a postholer, a trowel, pruning shears, watering can and a rake. I already have a trowel, watering can and shears for the balcony, but Eisirt rightly pointed out I should keep those here for the flowers I will inevitably plant on our litle balcony now.
The list for plants hasn't even been officially started yet, but already Anemoona promised me a hazelnut shrub (tree?), and HowlingMoon said they'd get me a japanese wineberry, which I love! We used to have one in Ouderkerk and I grew up munching on these as a kid.
Slowly, stuff is developing in my head. Maybe a couple of posts, supporting some netting or wiring will be great for growing peas or cucumbers. I will have to read the Field Guide to Urban Gardening again, maybe pick up a book on permaculture gardening and just....learn by doing.
More to definitely come!
There was an association renting out allotment gardens quite close to home: Volkstuinvereniging Genderbeemd, wedged between the Gender our neighbourhood was named for, and the drainage canal. It's about 15 minutes walking distance from home, and if I cycle down the Hurksestraat where my work is, I get there as well (it's kind of a weird triangle between work, home and the allotments).
After I sent in my down payment to even be considered for the waiting list, I received an e-mail on June 29th 2020 that I was 15th on the waiting list. I figured that would mean it would be quite a while before I would even get anywhere near a garden. I figured people who had a garden there would keep it for many years, and they would only stop if they became too old or moved away.
Imagine my surprise when I got the e-mail two weeks ago: a couple of gardens had freed up and they would invite people from the waiting list to come view them. The people who showed up would be able to pick a garden according to their place on the waiting list.
I figured if I didn't show up for the showing, I would definitely not have a garden, so I replied that I would be there.
I knew where the allotments were of course, but I had no idea where "gate 14" they spoke of might be. Luckily someone was already waiting at one of the gates and we figured it out together. There were six people coming to look, and two of them were spouses, so there were actually just four people vying for the allotments. And apparantly, there were also four allotments to look at. I was psyched! This meant that whatever happened, I would get an allotment that day!
The first one we looked at was 100 square meters and I was a little dismayed by its layout, running alongside a narrow path; and its size as well. 100 square meters seemed so large! The second garden was even larger, at 135 square meters. It had a shed and a 'cage' and it came with netting you could put over the cage to keep the birds off your berry bushes. If you chose this allotment, you'd have to pay 375 euro for the shed and things that were already on it.
The third one was in a whole different part, further north-east, and allotment number four was directly adjacent to it. The vibe in this part of the garden was so much better, and I knew that if I could choose, I would choose one of these two. It felt right.
They were still pretty large, and the third allotment we looked at had a knee-high fence you could put greenhouse windows over (but they were all missing) or you could fill them up to create a raised bed. There was a little weird corner with some bushes on the other side of the path.
And the fourth garden was 105 square meters, a long stretch of roughly four meters wide, running towards the Gender. It was completely bare, no shed or greenhouse or anything I would have to buy before I could start. The path running between allotment 3 and 4 was fenced on the side of number 4, so people couldn't step into your garden, and there was a gate allowing access on the short side of the garden.
Mustafa and his wife were the first ones to pick. They chose the largest garden, with the shed and the 'cage'. And then I could pick! I was surprised at that, I really hadn't expected this. I chose number four happily and with a big smile on my face. The young couple, Freke and Rinze, who could choose after me picked the third one right on the other side of the path and we exchanged phone numbers.
So now I have an allotment!
I'm ecstatic and a little intimidated. The amount of planting space is twice the size of my apartment! Slowly, as the weekend progressed, I realised I would no longer have limitations as to what crops I could grow. On a balcony, growing potatoes is a waste of time - a whole season just to grow a single dinner of tiny potatoes in a pot? No thanks. And suddenly the plants that would go for world domination are an option as well: cucumbers, melons and squash.
Although the Gender is right at the end of my garden, I was already warned it is mostly stagnant (and thus, not suitable to water from especially in hot summers), but we can take water from the canal on the other end of the strip of land. There is even a pump we can borrow from the association for this, for when you don't relish walking 50 meters with heavy buckets.
That's where my mind went instantly: rain water collection and retention. A shed or greenhouse to sow seeds indoors and to store tools dry would also allow for rainwater collection, a good start. Plant schemes were farthest from my mind!
Tricky thing about getting a shed or greenhouse is also: how to anchor this properly so it doesn't blow away in the first storm? I have NO clue how to even do this. So I called my mom, and she said "Ah, that's no big deal. You just dig a trench, mason a little wall, and build the greenhouse on that. We did that for our greenhouse, it works like a charm." Apparently you can use the brick wall as a foundation and bolt a greenhouse on top of it. Who knew? (I'm already learning so much!)
Slowly I started on a little list: a greenhouse and a shed, double rainbarrows, a little tiled surface to park my bike on, two chairs and a little table. On the next page I wrote a list of tools I will need: a spade, a tined fork, a hoe, a postholer, a trowel, pruning shears, watering can and a rake. I already have a trowel, watering can and shears for the balcony, but Eisirt rightly pointed out I should keep those here for the flowers I will inevitably plant on our litle balcony now.
The list for plants hasn't even been officially started yet, but already Anemoona promised me a hazelnut shrub (tree?), and HowlingMoon said they'd get me a japanese wineberry, which I love! We used to have one in Ouderkerk and I grew up munching on these as a kid.
Slowly, stuff is developing in my head. Maybe a couple of posts, supporting some netting or wiring will be great for growing peas or cucumbers. I will have to read the Field Guide to Urban Gardening again, maybe pick up a book on permaculture gardening and just....learn by doing.
More to definitely come!
