About me

We are often shown images of “perfect” and “pristine” allotments, when the reality is we mostly take on overgrown, neglected plots which take a whole lot of work to tame and sculpt. I know it can often feel like we are constantly falling short. I want to show that it is ok for it to be a work in progress, and that the process can even be the fun part. This blog is a written and photographic record of my journey.

I am a 50-something year-old, based in North Yorkshire, who gardens on the side of a full-time job. Creating and growing have always been my healing space and I have always had a strong affinity for plants. I travelled throughout my twenties without being able to grow anything, and in a way being uprooted for so long has compelled me to put down literal roots.

I started this journey by cultivating a small edge of a field in Kent, then the two gardens I held in North Yorkshire: when I moved here I wanted to buy land and grow on a bigger scale but this never materialised. In 2019 I was offered two allotment plots by a friend and I leapt at the opportunity to scale up from a garden. One plot had been left for at least a year but was previously well looked after, the second had not been touched for many years and was essentially a poor meadow. It has been tough trying to get both of them under control, whilst also working and looking after two children. At times it has felt impossible, more like hard work than joy. I am surrounded by traditional allotment growers: mostly older men, who are wedded to chemicals and mechanisation, and who tried to convince me to plough it and spray with glyphosate. Almost everyone has told me to give at least one plot up, but it has just made me more determined to carry on.

I had a breakdown in 2023 when everything in my life seemed to be falling apart. I was so ill that visiting the plots I love took everything out of me. The weeds were reclaiming the ground I had cleared previously, it took all my strength to dig, and I had to have long breaks to recover my energy. However, finally it is creeping back into shape. It’s still slow progress (as good things often are), but the allotments have become part of my recovery, my focus. This blog is to document that journey, from its imperfect shape to a version of my imagining. I am hoping that if nothing else it will spur me on, and perhaps one day, show others that the road to creating your ideal allotment is a long, messy process, but worth it for our mental and physical health.