LET ’ S GO OUTS IDE
relax. I’ve gained friends and just a sense of achievement.” The cook likes to be as experimental with growing as eating – with cucamelons, circle brussels sprouts, yellow raspberries, purple globe artichoke and heritage tomatoes waiting to sprout. She shares her culinary creations to the Trumpington Meadows Allotment Growers Facebook group. One upshot of rocketing interest in allotments is that, increasingly, urban developers are including them in planned housing. Though, Helen fears this may be
“I’m passionately involved in gardening for wellbeing,” Li says. “It is good for your mental and physical health. It’s a green gym – you don’t have to pay, just go and do some volunteer digging!” While gardening was once considered the pursuit of older generations, vastly heightened climate awareness has inspired a budding breed of growers. “Gardening tends to be passed on generation to generation,” Helen, chair of the Nuffield Road Allotment Society, suggests. “Plenty of people on the allotment are doing what they did with their
merely a box-ticking exercise. “We could be utilising a lot more spaces that are currently empty. If local people took initiative and felt
fathers. Now, they’re in their 70s.” During the pandemic, some experienced gardeners were under strain, while new numbers boomed, leading to a period of rapid change. Though allotments require maintenance, nature must – to an extent – be allowed
GO AND DO SOME VOLUNTEER DIGGING
ownership of those, that’s another form of allotmenting.”
GROWING TOGETHER If managed well,
allotments can introduce a breadth of opportunity for equality and education. Li began gardening to feed her family: “I couldn’t afford to buy organic fruit and vegetables, so I started growing my own. I became interested in promoting healthy eating and organic growing, especially for young families and those on low incomes.” Gardening, though, is often an uphill struggle. Jess and her friend Aoife, an agronomist, made the @plot84a_cambridge Instagram in November 2020, to document their allotment journey from bare soil to
to run its course. Helen emphasises the importance of messiness: “What constitutes real nature isn’t necessarily manicured.” Strolling around the site nestled in East Chesterton, its glorious unruliness, creativity and diversity is striking – something, Helen says, that should be celebrated. A GARDEN OF ONE’S OWN Societies are the foundation of Cambridgeshire’s allotments, guiding its members towards the best soils and equipment, and offering advice on everything from efficient growing methods to diets. Some, such as the Rock Allotment Society, are hundreds of years old. After lockdown, Nuffield Road restored its community garden (formerly removed in the 2000s), to provide extra support for new gardeners flocking to these horticultural hubs. Shared spaces can be a good alternative for those unable to devote themselves to their own patch, while they can reap many of the same rewards. Room of one’s own is still important: Becky, a chef, was among those without a garden during the pandemic. Her passion for all things green grew out of her love of food, manifesting in a balcony overrun with plants. Fortunately, she was offered an allotment on Trumpington Meadows before the first lockdown. “My workplace was closed, so I had a lot of hours. It was amazing to have a place to go. I love my husband, but time apart is important. “I’ve learned to take moments to myself and be happy with that, which I didn’t really do before my allotment,” Becky continues. “Whereas, now I can spend five hours weeding and let my mind
IN THE OPEN Growers rave about the mental health benefits of working outside
70 MARCH 2022 CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK
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