Growing your own produce is incredibly rewarding and being out in the fresh air and amongst nature is great for your physical and mental health. Many people take up allotment gardening when they retire as they have more freedom and time available to them to take part in this activity. It could be a way to meet new people if you move home to be nearer to family and perhaps into a Park Homes Gloucestershire site such as those you can see at Park Home Life to be a part of a community of like minded people.

If you are looking to get started with an allotment here are a few tips for you.

• Find a plot – your local parish council should be able to give you a list of allotments that are available in your area or you may find an independent organisation that looks after these areas. Once you have contacted them they will be able to let you know of any allotment spaces that are available and what your yearly cost will be.

• Soil – once you have been given your allotment space it is important to speak to other gardeners at the site to find out what kind of soil that you have. You can also have a pH test done using a kit that you can buy online or from your local garden centre. This will help to tell you what fruits and vegetables will grow well in your soil and which ones to avoid.
• Planning – it can be tempting to jump straight in and start planting your veggies but planning is incredibly important. Draw out your plot and mark where you want to place each vegetable or fruit that you plan to grow. This way you can ensure that you make the most of the space that you have available to you.

The other excellent benefit of owning your allotment is that you can grow all your own lovely veggies and know that they are organic. In the long run you’ll be able to cut down on your supermarket and shopping bills if you can take potatoes and carrots off the list. You could even try growing some more fancy varieties like purple carrots and even cardoons if you are feeling really adventurous.  It also frees up space in your own home garden so that you can concentrate on decorative flowers and shrubs. The space required for a decent set of strawberry and raspberry plants is huge and the allotment can solve that problem for you.  There are lots of space hunger varieties that can be accommodated at the allotment. Herbs such as Mint and Thyme can become very unruly in a back garden but here at the allotment they can be allowed to let themselves go wild.

The main thing to remember is that the allotment is a place where you can have fun and experiment with what you want to grow. All societies have rules as to what you can and can’t do but before long you could be winning prizes for that giant marrow you’ve managed to cultivate in the local fruit and veg show.