Allotment newbie -allotments with young children

[Rose0411]

Hello!
I'm in need of some advice regarding allotments and children and the work involved.
I have a DS 6 and DD 2 (just). I have been on the allotment waiting list for a while and was offered a plot a week ago. I was full of excitement that my plans would finally be realised and thinking of all the fun family time we could have in the outdoors, growing and having space for the kids to dig in mud without turning our small garden into a mud pit. So the first weekend I go up with both children (DH) at work and we last 15 minutes because DD just wants to run and will not stay on the plot and screams relentlessly when told no (all lovely new behaviours coinciding with getting a plot and turning 2 no doubt) so I went up later with just DS and I covered the plot.
Then today my DH was off so we went up after dropping DS off to school. DD wanted to run again and screamed blue murder the whole time we were there. My aim was to get a fence up in the hope that once she is contained, she will be happy digging and playing in water (as she is in our garden) while I get sowing/weeding etc. But I didn't even get the chance to get the fence up before we had to leave. We don't have any child care and our aim was to have her in the pram with a tablet while we got it done but she has figured out how to escape that. I feel quite disappointed and I think I might have to hand the keys back and try again in a few years. Not sure what I'm asking really, my partner doesn't understand my disappointment as he isn't into gardening. I guess any advice from allotment parents welcome.
The one advantage of this plot is it is in reasonably good condition so although I had plans to change the layout, I could just keep it as it is this year, weed and then plant up. I have loads of potatoes and strawberry plants ready to go in.
My thoughts are either:

1. try and get the fence up on my own (not sure how yet) and see how she gets on once contained
2. just go up alone on days when both me and DH off work, but that is every other weekend and evenings after 8pm
3. don't invest any more into it, give it up and let the next person have a go.

Sorry for rattling on.

Does the allotment have some sort of communications, Facebook or WhatsApp? Is there someone else in a similar position and you could take turns about with childcare?

Do you have an allotment association you can go to for advice? They might be able to find a retired plot holder to build a ‘child proof’ fenced in area for you. I’ve found the retired chaps on mine are generally friendly and quite happy to help a newbie get started. I’ve recently paid a chap on mine to tidy my plot up, and I know he’s recently built fences out of various pieces of wood and off cuts for other plots.

I'd be tempted to cover most of it, build a 'play pen' type area and grow stuff that needs very little input from you. Fruit, rhubarb, potatoes. Use a no dig method and lots of mulch in the beds you are using.

If it's a huge plot - just take half and let them give the other half to someone else on the list.

At least give it a go. It might mean your husband has to do a bit more childcare for a a few weekends till you baby proof it.

There'a a book called 1/2 hour allotment that I found really useful. It gets to the basics for the very time poor. The idea is that you can manage a small plot in 1/2 an hour a day 5 days a week. so 2.5 hours a week.

It does get easier with kids but it takes a little while.

Covering up most of it so it doesn't get weedy - and growing potatoes which smother out weeds will be a start.

It takes so long to get a plot it seems a shame to give it up.

They do take a lot of work though.

You are allowed some free space. Use it to put a second hand slide /sand pit on ..
My dc bloody hate our allotment..

Have a box of allotment toys which are only for the allotment (so the novelty of them doesn’t wear off). See what you can source second hand, knock off Happyland type things work well for us, plastic things that won’t be wrecked if they get left at the allotment a time or two.

Maybe leave your DD at home once or twice while you get the fence up and make a bit of initial progress. Take her again when the place is a little bit more ready for her.

Take your DD up there with the aim of her running and playing, rather than with the aim of you getting stuff done. She might be happier to settle a bit more once she’s explored the big new exciting space.

Has anyone there got chickens? Make friends with them and get your DD to dig for worms to feed them!

Also, I'm the gardener, not my husband, but there's bits of it he finds not to appalling. So he'll happily go up there on his own and strim, he's quite focused on weeding, and we've got a small pond that he likes - and he looks after the roses.

Just saying there might be bits your husband is happy to help with.

Thank you so much for all your positive and helpful responses, I am feeling much more hopeful. I took my son up after school and left my daughter with my husband. My son loves it and was content making a 'mud volcano' and chatting to everyone he came across about our raspberries.
I managed to get the fence up and a bed cleared ready for strawberries, and will take my daughter down tomorrow to see how she responds to being contained. I will also take some toys. I met our allotment neighbour whose kids go to the same school as my son and she was encouraging as well. I'll keep going for as long as I can and hopefully the children will settle with time. Thanks again for the encouragement and advice.

Try and stick with it because in a couple of years time she will no doubt love it!

Its a tricky one! My dc always hated he allotment, mostly wouldnt come down with us and if persuaded, they spent the whole time hitting the grass with sticks, being bored. Only now they are adults are they interested in gardening. I remember reading something that Monty Don wrote about trying to encourage children to garden, and his viewpoint was that they should see gardens as somewhere to play and enjoy and let the gardening come later. Thre trouble with allotments, especially with ones that you have just taken on , is that they are not really safe for running around. There could be glass, sharp sticks etc buried and toddlers could fall onto them.
Maybe some sort of enclosed area as suggested above with special allotment toys would work, but allotments do take quite a lot of work to maintain, so maybe growing potatoes, runner beans etc, basics for this summer would be an idea. It would be a shame to give it up...I was on my list for 2 years, so definitely give yourself time to try and find a solution!

Just read your update, that sounds very positive, good luck with your plot, and enjoy eating all your lovely fruit and veg!

My 2 year old is a nightmare when I take her up to my allotment. I have a small nature pond at one end and all she wants to do is either get in it or throw stones into it 🙄. My husband and I tired for weeks last summer - tried to get her digging and planting but she wouldn't focus. I'm the gardener so I now go up to the allotment on my own - which is very difficult at the moment as I'm 35 weeks pregnant 🙈 but I'm determined to at least get some potatoes and a few easy bits growing over the next few weeks and make sure the rest of the plot is covered in weed matting. Last year I managed to grow quite a lot on my own.

This summer I'm hoping to set up a mud kitchen for DD to try and keep her occupied. My nephew is 4 and he is much happier to sit and dig so I'm hopeful that over the next few years it will get a bit easier.

I second the pp who said to ask around for help. My DD is chair of her allotment society and she often speaks of the people who are no longer able to manage a plot alone but who would be very happy to help out. Her allotment also has a community garden, where adults with special needs come along with their carers to do bits and bobs in others allotments, as well as looking after their own.

Get talking to others in the allotment, my d d and her partner have had loads of help when they started years ago, and now try to pass on help when needed

Stick with it and do the bare minimum to be able to keep the plot - for example our allotment association say a minimum of a third of the plot must actively be in use/managed at any given time.

It will get better once the kids are used to it and it's so hard to get an allotment you don't want to give it up!
We bought our DC their own little sets of tools and have an area that they can dig, make mud pies, bury and dig up their toys etc. Good luck, having an allotment is quite daunting at first but it's such a life enhancing thing to have :)