Turn a sod - and unearth a profit

Turn a sod - and unearth a profit

Marlene Barrett has been enjoying salad leaves and rhubarb, and soon she'll be working her way through cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, aubergines, blackberries and fennel. Much later, she will get a crop of purple-sprouting broccoli. All are organic and as fresh as the time it takes to pick or dig them and prepare them for her table.

Since last summer Marlene has been sharing an allotment. 'I have never done any gardening before. I have never even thought of myself as green-fingered. But I just got interested in the idea,' she says. But now, once a week, she's to be found on her shared allotment in Waltham Forest, east London.

Anecdotal evidence indicates that people all over Britain are starting to take an interest in growing their own vegetables. Which could be good news for anyone selling a house that comes with an allotment. But buyers, sellers and allotment-seekers everywhere should be warned - those neat little plots are also prized by developers.

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Allotments have long been a feature of British life. In difficult times, they have provided vital supplies of food. In more prosperous times, they have offered a relaxing, recreational outlet. Their place in British culture was formalised in 1908, when Parliament passed an act that compelled local councils to provide land for allotments. The standard size nominated then still applies now - 10 rods, or about 250 square metres.

Demand for these plots was falling at one time, but now it is said to be rising again. 'There has definitely been an increase in the number of people keen to take on an allotment,' says Geoff Stokes, secretary of the National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners. The Henry Doubleday Research Association agrees. Spokesperson Sarah Tyrrell points out that its most recent 'Starting an Allotment' talk was 'inundated with bookings'.

Long-term allotment enthusiast Sue Baderman has a theory about this. 'There is a fear about the quality of today's fruit and vegetables. At the same time there is an awareness of the benefits - both in terms of goodness and taste - of using the best fresh ingredients. And one response to all that is to grow your own.'

And it seems that once people start, they don't want to stop. 'It does become a real passion,' says Baderman, who has been tending an allotment near her home in Camden, north west London, for more than 15 years. 'You just get so much out of it on a personal level. You are constantly learning. You are constantly being rewarded for your efforts. And you instantly feel calmer. The stresses of the day and, if you live in a city, the stresses of the city, just disappear. It's very therapeutic.'

Not to mention the damsons and greengage, plums and apples, beans, Swiss chard, radishes, new potatoes and baby beetroot, tarragon, mint and coriander that Sue grows.

Perhaps it is no surprise then that house-sellers whose property comes with an allotment could be in for a windfall. Peter Bolton-King, chief executive of the National Association of Estate Agents, explains: 'There is no hard-and-fast rule, but I think it is fair to say that to some buyers at least, a property with an allotment will be a bonus, a bonus that could make the whole proposition more attractive.'

But it is not just the emerging digging class which wants to get its hands on allotments. An article in the environmental magazine the Ecologist argues that 'this patchwork of land is under increasing threat from developers and sloppy local councils, who see allotments only as something to be built on'.

A couple of years ago several allotments in Acton, west London, were threatened; some were lost, but an action group was formed to save the rest. Earlier this year it was agreed that several allotments in Howden, East Yorkshire, could be relocated to make way for a supermarket. Just a few weeks ago a public inquiry was launched into whether a developer ought to be able to buy a strip of land in Bishop Stoke, Hampshire, reserved for local allotments. 'This sort of thing is happening up and down the country,' confirms Stokes.

So what should allotment enthusiasts do? 'Find out where your nearest available allotment is, really make the most of it and, if necessary, band together with others to defend it,' says Stokes.

Developers may disagree but, for lovers of gardening, good food and open spaces, the resurgent interest in allotments may have come at just the right time.

Windows on the world of organic gardening

If you can't get your own allotment but are keen to grow your own food, there are other options. One is to contribute to a communal allotment. For more information, contact the Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens. Another is to create a window box filled with some compact herbs, salad leaves and mixed vegetables. Designed for beginners, for more experienced gardeners and for advanced horticulturalists, they feature everything from lettuces and mini courgettes to chillies and herbs.

The Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens can be contacted on 0117 923 1800 or www.farmgarden.org.uk; the Henry Doubleday Research Association on 024 7630 3517 or hdra.org.uk; the National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners on 01536 266576 or www.nsalg.org.uk; the Women's Environmental Network on 020 7481 9004 or www.wen.org.uk

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