How strict are your allotment committee?

[ohfook]

This is just out of curiosity really as I’m due my first inspection soon and I’m trying to work out how strict places are and what is the norm as I haven’t quite made the progress I’d envisaged and I’m really struggling to keep on top of the mares tail. 2 months ago I’d never heard of the stuff and now it is literally the bane of my life.

When I first took over the plot I was given 3 pages of rules to familiarise myself with however most of them I see broken on a daily basis. No hosepipes, trees under six foot, nothing attached to the fences and keep the path in front of your allotment weed free all seem to be largely ignored. Another rule of asking before bringing any wood on to the site also seems a bit impractical.

On the other hand, the plot I’ve taken over previously belonged to a man who was kicked off the site. Various people, depending on whether they sided with the committee or the previous owner, have very different takes on the situation, but the general consensus seems to be that his plot was very productive but looked awful.

So in the interests of research, can you tell me how strict your committee is; have they or would they ever ask anybody to leave the plot and what for?

I actually think my title should say is and not are now I’ve re-read it!
How strict is your allotment committee?

Ours is apparently known locally for being on the stricter side! We have monthly inspections and you get an email if there's anything they want sorted (e.g. too weedy, not enough growing). They have asked people to leave before but they would give them a good few chances after the initial message, especially if they're quite new. Reasons I know people have been asked to leave (rare) are consistently not keeping on top of weeding to the point where it's affecting other plots, leaving lots of rubbish on site and not actively using the plots for growing food. That being said they are fair and if anyone is struggling will try to help if they know what the issue is.

Hopefully your committee will also be fair, and don't be hard on yourself for not making the progress you'd hoped. We've had a plot for three years and are still working towards getting all of it cleared and productive (and we don't have mares tail to deal with).

Ours (managed by the parish council) is not at all strict! The rules they DO uphold are no tyres, and no fires. We're also not allowed use hosepipes.

But I've never known them to get strict around productivity or % in production, and it takes literal years to get rid of people who do precisely nothing, ie don't come at all.

That’s really interesting - there seems to be a lot of variation between what is allowed and what isn’t!

Ours used to be notorious across our city for having more and stricter rules than most. How strictly the rules are enforced depends on who’s on the committee at any given time, but they seem to have become more realistic in recent years; I used to feel that the standard they expected only stood a chance of being achieved by the retired people who are there for six whole days a week,

We inspect twice a year ( May and September) . I don’t think we are very strict but will ask plotholders to improve if there are a lot of weeds, especially those that are flowering and spreading seed. Other things we look for are grass paths not cut or no signs of cultivation. If there is a known Equistemum problem on your site I doubt they are going to worry too much about it. It would be worthwhile talking to a committee member and asking them how they think you are doing.

Thanks for your replies. It’s getting inspected next week. I’ve definitely made progress it’s just the bloody mares tail I can’t get a handle on. I’m popping to b&q today to buy a shit load of weed membrane, so hopefully that should help. The stuff is the bane of my life!

I’s setting up a compost bay today. Should I put weed membrane under that to stop the mares tail getting in the compost or will that also stop worms getting in the compost too?

Ours is reasonably strict, but all the rules seem sensible for each others enjoyment of their plot. It’s run on a co operative basis with some equipment shared. It’s reasonably tidy and each allotment holder is required to strip the paths around their plot. We have large water troughs fed from huge water holders, so every plot is near access to water, although we do have our own butts. There are some derelict plots, which I don’t understand as there is a waiting list, but we’re new so don’t know how or why you’d be asked to leave.
our plot’s previous owner had a bonfire and cut a fruit tree down!

They will be aware there is horsetail and you absolutely will not be able to ged rid of it. Personally I would move allotments.

It’s all over the site but other people don’t seem to have it running rampant like I do. I assume that they have more time to pop down and weed but that’s just a guess. They do give each plot holder ammonium sulphamate to get on top of it but that’s at the end of the growing season not at the start. I was bloody lucky to get this plot - I’d rather have this with the marestail, as much as i hate it, than go back on the waiting list again!

I’m our site rep for our allotment so know a little about inspections. In our city of you’ve taken on an overgrown plot they will take that into account. In our city you have to have a plot that is a complete mess with no action after a warning to have it taken off you.

I hope you enjoy your new allotment and get it cleared enough to grow stuff this year.

I look after the allotments in our small village, there used to be a committee but as they had dwindled to nothing I took it over by default (parish clerk).
I got some people to leave who had done nothing to their plots for years by frequent inspections and enforcing lapsed rules.

Now the allotments mostly look after themselves, I check once a month to make sure everything is going ok, remind people of rules when I need to, and try to be accommodating to plot holders requests. I also have an allotment manager who is good at keeping things in check.

I am always flexible with new plot holders and try to find ways to help if there is a known problem, especially if I can see they are working hard to overcome it themselves.

For me it’s much better to try and keep someone I know is keen to get things right than go through all the effort of getting a new (good) tenant.

I feel your pain OP. I’ve just got an allotment and like you I’d never heard of mares tail. What a nightmare it is!
I was pulling bits of it out I didn’t know what it was, but there was heavy membrane AND tarp over the whole ground that had been there since last year, when it was pulled back this stuff sprang up like a forest. It was covered. So I doubt your membrane will work.

What we did was dig and pull out what we could. Dug again and pulled more, you can never get rid of it the roots go down as far as the mines and spread underground like mad, and a tiny hair of the stuff is a new plant.
I’ve had nightmares about it it’s awful stuff, all you can do is keep pulling it up it’s probably all over the allotments but you won’t see it if people are pulling it up.
I’m worried I take the spores home and get it in my garden.

Thank you for all of your replies. We were inspected a few days ago and one of the committee popped in after to give us some pumpkins and said he could see we’re making progress and just remember to keep on top of the weeds - all very friendly and low key!