ALLOTMENTS – A GREAT IDEA BUT!

By Clodagh and Dick Handscombe
Authors of Growing vegetables in Spain and other books

We are often asked is it possible to rent an allotment in Spain.

If you are lucky enough to live in Villmartin in Cadiz province the answer is yes but elsewhere in Andalusia and indeed Spain the answer is rarely. Historically the concept of allotment associations or council allotments was never required in Spain for many persons owned a piece of land, or someone else in the family did, on which vegetables and fruit were grown for sale and for the family. In the years following the civil war many families would not have survived without such activities. Also up to only a few years ago many villages and towns were self sufficient with vegetables and fruit from the surrounding area being delivered direct to local markets and shops.

Before the advent of the  motorway network of the last ten to fifteen years inter regional, let alone trans Spain, transport by lorry was difficult and slow and the number of chilled warehouses for keeping produce fresh limited. Now of course produce of all types cross Spain between markets and hyperstore warehouses as well as imported fruit and vegetables from airports and ports and their purchase is based on lowest cost for reasonable quality in order that the added costs of transport, packing stations, storage chemicals, warehouses, giant superstores, unsold waste, interest on loans to banks and dividends to international shareholders can be covered.

As the past year has shown such costs are not going down so the producing agriculturists and village smallholders are continually squeezed. Some can weather these pressures and those of increased costs of seeds, fuel, fertilizers, insecticides, and pesticides etc but others switch to the now more profitable biofuel crops or give up all together hoping that their land will be urbanised or used for a bypass etc..

Because of this it may now be possible to rent an allotment at least on a temporary basis as we do.

The end result is that more and more fruit and vegetables travel long distances or are imported and growers are required to grow varieties that are tough enough to withstand multi handling and bumping around. This has resulted in some of the more tasty varieties that had limited shelf life being dropped from commercial production..

So if you are concerned about the cost, freshness and healthiness of the families food purchases in the absence of allotments to rent the alternative is to grow your own making the best use of the space you have whether the kitchen for sprouting seeds and pots of herbs, the garage for bags of mushrooms, containers for a diversity of vegetables and dwarf fruit trees on the apartment or penthouse  terrace, raised beds in small and large gardens or larger vegetable plots and fruit trees around the garden. Each way of growing fruit and vegetables are fully described in our books Growing fruit in Spain and Growing vegetables in Spain. Even if you have never done this have a go now. The books tell you what to grow, when to grow it, how to grow it, when to harvest it, how to store or use gluts and solve problems related to the weather and pest problems on the way.

If you find you have a novel problem you can always send a question to us via www.yourgardeninspain.com. We normally answer them directly and then through a later article for the benefit of other gardeners.

Clodagh and Dicks books including those mentioned above plus Your Garden in Spain can be obtained from bookshops and some British product shops or by mail order via the publishers Santana Books new user friendly website www.santanabooks.com. In the UK the books can be obtained via bookshops and very conveniently via the Royal Horticultural Society Bookshop on 0845-260-4505

© Clodagh and Dick Handscombe May 2008