5 Reasons to Get a Family Allotment

My husband and I had talked about growing our own for a while when, in spring 2021, an opportunity to take on a starter plot came up at our local allotment. We weren’t sure whether the time was right – we had a pre-schooler, a baby due in the summer and were about to embark on a major refurbishment project at home – but we knew it was too good to miss, especially as the scope for growing anything in our modest garden was very limited. So we bit the bullet and signed up. And we’ve never looked back.

Getting a Starter Plot
The starter plot was ideal for us as it gave us a smaller patch to experiment with and came with lots of support from the Allotment Association, as well as shared use of a well-equipped tool shed and greenhouse. All we needed to do was prep the ground and start planting. Many hands make light work, so we took on a joint tenancy with my sister, brother-in-law and their then-14-month-old daughter, making it a real family affair. Double the fun!

Our daughter, who was three at the time, loved it. Donning her wellies and gardening gloves, some of my fondest memories are of watching her wobble down the path, following her Daddy with her tiny wheelbarrow. Remembering the way her eyes widened when she tasted her first homegrown tomato. Seeing her excitement at just how big the courgettes had suddenly become.

Learning Through Nature
She was fascinated by the process of turning over the soil, watching the worms do their thing and dropping tiny seeds into the ground. Or planting up seedlings we’d been nurturing on windowsills at home – finally ready to take the leap out into the open. We’d talk her through the germination process, learning some things along the way ourselves, as we dreamed of the fruits of our labour being ready for harvest in a few months’ time. With a bit of luck…

It became part of our weekend ritual; pop to the allotment for a potter around, tick off a few jobs and make our way to the coffee shop down the road for a well-earned brunch. And it was a great way to make sure we got our fresh air fix, even when the weather wasn’t on our side. As a forest schooler, our daughter was used to being out in all weathers and had built up a certain level of resilience which meant she would actually look forward to getting out in the rain, pulling on her waterproofs and observing with interest how the ground had changed after a period of drought or how the worms would make their way to the surface following a downpour. It gave us ample chance to live out our family motto – “there’s no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes” – and demonstrate the life cycles of the natural world in action.

Moving on to a Bigger Plot
Fast forward 18 months and we’ve progressed onto a bigger, more permanent plot with an extra pair of hands from our now-16-month-old son. It’s been tough going at times – a lot of hard work was involved in preparing this particular plot – during a period in which our young family also needed plenty of attention. Sheds to build, polytunnels to erect, ground to prepare and fences to put up all meant my husband would be spending most of his spare time there whilst I recovered in the months following the birth of our son. But in some ways, the escape afforded by our allotment allowed us to get fresh perspective on the stresses of life as a new family of four; from the sleepless nights with a newborn to the seemingly endless piles of nappies to wash, everything seems that little bit easier when you’ve left the housework behind and spent some time outdoors. And now our family has matured into the next phase of having a toddler, who loves pottering around behind his big sister and cousin, our allotment has really come into its own as a space for them to learn and grow.

As a family, we like to honour the seasons. To enjoy the fleeting beauty of each phase of spring, summer, autumn and winter and celebrate the different feelings we get from each of these times. To notice how the world around us changes, how our bodies adapt to new periods of darkness and light. With our allotment, we’ve learned more about the best times to plant certain seeds and what fruits and vegetables we could have on our plates throughout the year. Noticing even more closely how our ever-changing climate affects our planet has given us some powerful food for thought on why we need to take better care of our natural habitat.

Creating Community on our Allotment
This year we’ve had delicious tomatoes, enormous pumpkins and a bumper crop of plums ready to preserve and share – and that’s just for starters. Now we’ve done the preparation with the infrastructure, and we’re beyond the hard yards of life with a newborn baby, we are ready to make the most of it next year. Sharing the experience with my sister and her young family has made the process even more special. It teaches our children some important life lessons in a fun and engaging way, from the benefits of hard work to the joy of sharing harvests with our local community. Not to mention the education they’re getting in where our food actually comes from and the effort and resources involved in producing it, which helps us reinforce the minimal-waste attitude we try so hard to live by.

There’s always something to do on the allotment. Always a reason to get down there and get our hands dirty, to breathe in the fresh air, to pluck a fresh tomato from the vine. It brings such joy to the whole family in so many different ways and each of us is learning new things every time we visit. It’s the perfect place for us to get some one-on-one time with our daughter, to practice mindfulness as we work the soil and debrief after a busy week. Or for my husband and I to spend a lunch break together while the kids are at school and nursery. And for the whole family to escape to as part of our slow weekend routine, unwinding in the great outdoors. Our own little patch of earth to nurture as we all grow, together.

• ​Gets us out in the fresh air
  
• Eating fresh tomatoes direct from the vine
  
• Learning new things every time we visit
  
• Time to practice mindfulness as we debrief after a busy week
  
• Place for my husband and I to take a lunch break together
  

Tori is a mother, freelance writer and former lawyer currently based in Derbyshire with her husband and two young children. She writes on lifestyle, careers and parenting, as well as copy and content writing for independent businesses. You can find her on Instagram @tori_beat or toribeat.co.uk