Getting started
To get off to a good start with your garden a planned approach and a little determination is all that you need. It is important to remember that the plot you receive may be overgrown and you may have to spend a lot of time gradually clearing and digging it.
Regulations
- Conditions for Erecting Sheds and Greenhouses on Allotment Sites
- Lighting Garden Bonfire Guidelines
Getting Started
The National Allotment Society Website offers a wide range of advice on:
- Checking Your Soil Type
- Choosing What To Grow
- Monthly Jobs
- Pest and Diseases
The BBC Gardening Guide is also a great place for detailed information.
Aminopyralid contaminated manure
It is important to check before using farmyard or stable manure that it does not contain the agricultural weed killer aminopyralid.
Aminopyralid has been used on farms to control weeds in grasslands. Where treated grass was eaten by livestock their manure may contain residues of the weed killer.
There may still be some affected manure and, while there are no concerns for human health, its use can cause poor distorted growth in many crops including beans, peas, potatoes and tomatoes, which will reduce harvests.
Therefore, ask the supplier to confirm that the manure does not contain aminopyralid. Stable owners may not be able to offer this assurance, so be very cautious about using stable manure.
For more information see Corteva - The Future of Agriculture (External website)
Weeds
Please use the sources below to get more advice on weeds:
- Injurious Weeds - information on the control of injurious weeds
- BBC Gardening-Weeds (external link) - information on how to manage/prevent weeds
Get composting
Why not transform your organic waste into a valuable resource for your allotment garden?
Bassetlaw District Council has partnered with Get Composing to give residents and tenants the opportunity to purchase units at a reduced rate. There is also the option to 'buy on get one half price'.
To order either go to the Get Composting or by telephoning 0844 571 4444.
Erection of sheds and greenhouses
Conditions
The erection of all temporary buildings, sheds and greenhouses on the Council's allotment sites, must conform to the following terms and conditions.
- Any shed or greenhouse will be erected no closer than SIX FEET from any fence or hedge and shall not be larger than 8ft x 6ft or 7ft by 7ft.
- Before the erection of any building, a plan showing the proposed location and all other details of the buildings must be forwarded to the authorised officer of the Council. Any building which is improperly sited or causes any nuisance, annoyance or shade to neighbouring gardeners, or to any housing property which borders the site, will be removed by the tenant.
- No building shall be erected on a concrete or brick, permanent or semi-permanent base. It is recommended that wooden beams such as sleepers be used, so that when a building is removed from the site the ground will be capable of cultivation.
- All sheds and greenhouses must be properly constructed and not made from waste materials such as old windows and doors. They must be maintained in good condition and repair at all times. If, in the opinion of the authorised officer of the Council a building has fallen into disrepair or become unsightly, the tenant will be required to remove it from site.
- On the termination of an allotment plot, any shed, greenhouse or other building must be removed from site within FOURTEEN DAYS of the date of giving notice to quit or termination date by the Council. After this time the building will become the property of the Council.
- The Council will not be responsible for any building or the security of its contents, or for any loss or damage to or from any building erected on an allotment plot. This will be the responsibility of the owner of the building.
Slugs and Snails
How to deal with them eating your plants
Natural ways
Slugs are eaten by frogs, toads, hedgehogs, centipedes, ground beetles, slowworm and fireflies, so make sure you don’t use any chemical sprays which can harm them. Providing suitable habitat and food will encourage these beneficial creatures to live in your garden or allotment.
Slug killers
Pesticides, based on aluminium sulphate, whilst not strictly organic, are environmentally friendly. They kill slugs and snails on contact with minimal risk to other wildlife or pets. There are commercially available products using aluminium sulphate as active ingredient.
If you must use slug pellets, read the instructions carefully and then follow the recommended application rates. You don’t need many slug pellets to kill the slugs and snails and remember that slug pellets will kill animals that predate on slugs.
Protective Barriers
Protective barriers such as plastic drinks bottles with the bottoms cut off and the screw tops removed to make individual protective cloches. Check for the first few days that a slug hasn’t been trapped inside the bottle.
Self-adhesive slug and snail tape can be purchased that creates a protective barrier around seed trays. It repels slugs and snails by a small electric charge naturally contained in the copper face of the tape.
Slug/snail repellents are available that contain natural yucca extract. These, when sprayed on the ground form a physical barrier which slugs/ snails will not cross. Like most barriers, it will withstand light rain, but will have to be renewed after heavy rain.
Materials such as lime, rough bark, crushed eggshells, wood ash, coffee grinds and gravel are said to make effective slug barriers. Sprinkle on the ground around plants.
Trapping
Slug traps can be easily made from empty plastic pots e.g. yoghurt pots, buried to half their depth in the soil and filled with water or beer. Slugs will climb up the sides, enter the tub and be killed. These are useful around newly planted seedlings. The trap may catch large black ground beetles which predate slugs and snails, so make sure the lip of the trap is at least 2 cm above the soil surface to stop beetles getting in.
Baiting and handpicking
Slugs will inevitably collect in cool damp spots. This fact can be used to advantage as a method of reducing slug populations. A piece of damp cardboard held down with stone, or a piece of carpet, for example, is ideal; just lift it up at regular intervals and dispose of the slugs underneath it by dropping them into a pot of salty water. This is unlikely to reduce the slug populations in the long run, but it can save individual plants, which is most satisfying.
Winter digging
Autumn digging, leaving the soil rough and cloddy while the slugs are still active will allow those species that hibernate to move deep into the soil. If you must dig, do it in the winter while the soil is cold and the slugs are less active. This may also help to kill some slugs, and expose them to predators such as birds. While digging, look out for slug eggs in the soil. These are little clusters of colourless, round eggs, looking rather like small frogspawn or sago.
Site Inspections
If you fail to cultivate your plot you will be issued a warning letter, you must cultivate in the timeframe given otherwise you will be served a plot termination notice to end your tenancy agreement with the council. Once termination notice is served you will not be permitted to return to the site and must return your site key and clear any belongings, waste or unwanted items accumulated on the plot.
If you are struggling to maintain your plot or have any health issues which may prevent you from cultivation, please inform the allotment office.
Co-workers
If you require assistance on your plot, you can request a form from the allotments office to add a co-worker onto the plot. (please note a co-worker has no legal rights or responsibilities to the plot).
Last Updated on Monday, February 17, 2025