A typical allotment plot, Essex, England

Allotment gardens are characterized by a concentration in one place of a few or up to several hundreds of land parcels that are assigned to individual families. In allotment gardens, the parcels are cultivated individually, contrary to other community garden types where the entire area is tended collectively by a group of people.^[1] The individual size of a parcel ranges between 200 and 400 square meters, and often the plots include a shed for tools and shelter. The individual gardeners are organized in an allotment association which leases the land from the owner who may be a public, private or ecclesiastical entity, provided that it is only used for gardening (i.e. growing vegetables, fruits and flowers), but not for residential purposes. The gardeners have to pay a small membership fee to the association, and have to abide with the corresponding constitution and by-laws. On the other hand, the membership entitles them to certain democratic rights.^[2], ^[3] a wikipedians plot! Photo by Graham Burnett, used with permission (my own!) This image is copyrighted and is not licenced under the GFDL. The licence holder allows anyone to use it for any non-commercial purpose, provided that the photographer Graham Burnett is credited File history Legend: (cur) = this is... a wikipedians plot! Photo by Graham Burnett, used with permission (my own!) This image is copyrighted and is not licenced under the GFDL. The licence holder allows anyone to use it for any non-commercial purpose, provided that the photographer Graham Burnett is credited File history Legend: (cur) = this is... Essex is a county in the East of England. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... Community gardens are small plots of land allocated to groups of people by some organization that holds title or lease to the land, sometimes for rent, sometimes simply as a grant of land. ...

Socio-cultural and economic functions of allotment gardens

The Office International du Coin de Terre et des Jardins Familiaux, a Luxembourg-based organization representing 3 million European allotment gardeners since 1926, describes the socio-cultural and economic functions of allotment gardens as follows:

• for the community a better quality of urban life through the reduction of noise, the binding of dust, the establishment of open green spaces in densly populated areas;
• for the environment the conservation of biotopes and the creation of linked biotopes;
• for families a meaningful leisure activity and the personal experience of sowing, growing, cultivating and harvesting healthy vegetables amidst high-rise buildings and the concrete jungle;
• for children and adolescents a place to play, communicate and to discover nature and its wonders;
• for working people relaxation from the stress of work;
• for the unemployed the feeling of being useful and not excluded as well as a supply of fresh vegetables at minimum cost;
• for immigrant families a possibility of communication and better integration in their host country;
• for disabled persons a place enabling them to participate in social life, to establish contacts and overcome loneliness;
• for senior citizens a place of communication with persons having the same interests as well as an opportunity of self-fulfillment during the period of retirement.

A biotope is an area of uniform environmental (physical) conditions providing habitat(s) for a specific assemblage of plants and animals. ...

Allotments in the United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, an allotment is a small area of land, let out at a nominal yearly rent by local government or independent allotment associations, for individuals to grow their own food. This could be considered as an example of a community garden system for urban and to some extent rural folk. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with rental agreement. ... Local governments are administrative offices of an area smaller than a state or province. ... Community gardens are small plots of land allocated to groups of people by some organization that holds title or lease to the land, sometimes for rent, sometimes simply as a grant of land. ... The city of San Francisco, an example of an urban area. ... Rural area in Dalarna, Sweden Qichun, a rural town in Hubei province, China Rural areas (also referred to as the country, countryside) are sparsely settled places away from the influence of large cities. ...

The allotment system began in the 18th century: for example, a 1732 engraving of Birmingham, England shows the town encircled by allotments, some of which still exist to this day. Following the Inclosure Acts and the Commons Act of 1876 the land available for personal cultivation by the poor was greatly diminished. To fulfil the need for land allotment legislation was included. The law was first fully codified in the Small Holdings and Allotment Act of 1908, it was modified by the Allotments Act of 1922 and subsequent Allotments Acts up until 1950. (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... See also Birmingham, USA, and other places called Birmingham. ... The Inclosure Acts were a number of United Kingdom Acts of Parliament which inclosed common land in the country. ...

Under the acts a local government is required to maintain an "adequate provision" of land, usually a large allotment field which can then be subdivided into allotment gardens for individual residents at a low rent. The rent is set at what a person "may reasonably be expected to pay" (1950), in 1997 the average rent for a statutary 10 square rods (250 square metres or one-sixteenth of an acre) plot was £22 a year. Each plot cannot exceed 40 square rods (1012 m²) and must be used for the production of fruit or vegetables for consumption by the plotholder and their family (1922), or of flowers for use by the plotholder and their family. The exact size and quality of the plots is not defined. The council has a duty to provide sufficient allotments to meet demand. The total income from allotments was £2.61 million and total expenditure was £8.44 million in 1997. In 2000 metrication legislation made it illegal to use square rods as a unit of pricing, which must now be priced in square metres. A rod is a unit of length, equal to 5. ... Fruit stall in Barcelona, Spain. ... Vegetables in a market Venn diagram representing the relationship between (botanical) fruits and vegetables. ... Metrication or metrification refers to the introduction of the SI metric system as the international standard for physical measurements—a long-term series of independent and systematic conversions from the various separate local systems of weights and measures. ...

Allotments in the East End of London on the banks of the Prescott Channel

Allotments in the rural village of Jordans

The total number of plots has varied greatly over time. In the 19th and early 20th century, the allotment system supplied much of the fresh vegetables eaten by the poor. In 1873 there were 244,268 plots and by 1918 there were around 1,500,000 plots. While numbers fell in the 1920s and 1930s, following an increase to 1,400,000 during World War II there were still around 1,117,000 plots in 1948. This number has been in decline since then, falling to 600,000 by the late 1960s. The Thorpe Inquiry of 1969 investigated the decline and put the causes as the decline in available land, increasing prosperity and the growth of other leisure activities. Image File history File linksMetadata Allotments_in_London_E15. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Allotments_in_London_E15. ... The Prescott Channel in July 2006, with cultivated fig tree The Prescott Channel was built in 1930 as part as flood relief for the River Lee Navaigation in the East End of London. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1225x800, 1145 KB) Self taken photos. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1225x800, 1145 KB) Self taken photos. ... Combatants Allied powers: United Kingdom Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000,000 Total...

Despite increased interest in "green" issues from the 1970s which revived interest in allotment gardening the rate of decline was only slowed, falling from 530,000 plots in 1970 to 497,000 in 1977 although there was a substantial waiting list. By 1980 the surge in interest was over, by 1997 the number of plots had fallen to around 265,000, with waiting lists of 13,000 and 44,000 vacant plots. Allotment users have organisations that campaign on their behalf: the National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners (NSALG), and in Scotland the Scottish Allotments and Gardens Society (SAGS).

Characteristics and historical background of allotment gardens in Germany

The history of the allotment gardens in Germany is closely connected with the period of industrialization and urbanization in Europe during the 19th century when a large number of people migrated from the rural areas to the cities to find employment and a better life. Very often, these families were living under extremely poor conditions suffering from inappropriate housing, malnutrition and other forms of social neglect. To improve their overall situation and to allow them to grow their own food, the city administrations, the churches or their employers provided open spaces for garden purposes. These were initially called the “gardens of the poor” and were later termed as “allotment gardens”. Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Malnutrition is a general term for the medical condition caused by an improper or insufficient diet. ...

The idea of organized allotment gardening reached a first peak after 1864, when the so-called “ Schreber Movement” started in the city of Leipzig in Saxony. A public initiative decided to lease areas within the city, with the purpose to make it possible for children to play in a healthy environment, and in harmony with nature. Later on, these areas included actual gardens for children, but soon adults tended towards taking over and cultivating these gardens. This kind of gardening type rapidly gained popularity not only in Germany, but also in many other European countries.^[4][5][6][7] [] (Sorbian/Lusatian: Lipsk) is the largest city in the Federal State (Bundesland) of Saxony in Germany. ... The Free State of Saxony (German: Freistaat Sachsen; Sorbian: Swobodny Stat Sakska) is the easternmost federal state of Germany. ...

The aspect of food security provided by allotment gardens became particularly evident during World Wars I and II. The socio-economic situation was very miserable, particularly as regards the nutritional status of urban residents. Many cities were isolated from their rural hinterlands and agricultural products did not reach the city markets anymore or were sold at very high prices at the black markets. Consequently, food production within the city, especially fruit and vegetable production in home gardens and allotment gardens, became essential for survival (Berliners cultivate vegetables by the ruins of the Reichstag in June 1946). The importance of allotment gardens for food security was so obvious that in 1919, one year after the end of World War I, the first legislation for allotment gardening in Germany was passed. The so-called “Small Garden and Small-Rent Land Law”, provided security in land tenure and fixed leasing fees. In 1983, this law was amended by the “Federal Allotment Gardens Act”(Bundeskleingartengesetz). Today, there are still about 1.4 million allotment gardens in Germany covering an area of 47,000 ha.^[8] Food security is a term used in development and humanitarian aid. ... A world war is a war affecting the majority of the worlds major nations. ... Home Gardens is a census-designated place located in Riverside County, California. ... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert Henry Asquith Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Woodrow...

Nevertheless, the importance of allotment gardening in Germany has shifted over the years. While in times of crisis and widespread poverty (from 1850 to 1950), allotment gardening was a part time job, and its main importance was to enhance food security and improve food supply, its present functions have to be seen under a different point of view. In times of busy working days and the hectic urban atmosphere, allotment gardens have turned into recreational areas and locations for social gatherings. As green oases within oceans of asphalt and cement, they are substantially contributing to the conservation of nature within cities. What was previously a part time job is nowadays considered as a hobby where the hectic schedule of the day becomes a distant memory, while digging the flowerbeds and getting a little soil under the fingernails. However, in situations of weak economy and high unemployment rates, gardens become increasingly important for food production again.(Schrebergärten voll im Trend)

Allotment gardens in Sweden

In 1895, the first allotment garden of Sweden was established in Malmö, followed by Stockholm in 1904. The local authorities were inspired by Anna Lindhagen, a woman in the upper ranks of society, who visited allotment gardens in Copenhagen and was delighted by them. The Swedish Federation of Leisure Gardening was founded in 1921 and represents today more than 26000 allotment and leisure gardeners. The members are organized in about 275 local societies all over Sweden. The land is usually rented from the local authorities. Motto: FrÃ¥n arbetarstad till kunskapsstad (eng: From industrial city to knowledge city) Location of Malmö in northern Europe Coordinates: Country Sweden Municipality Malmö Municipality County SkÃ¥ne Province Scania Charter 13th Century  - Mayor Illmar Reepalu Area    - City 335. ...   (IPA: ; UN/LOCODE: SE STO) is the capital of Sweden, and consequently the site of its Government and Parliament as well as the residence of the Swedish head of state, King Carl XVI Gustaf. ... Copenhagen (IPA: , rhyming with pagan (the way the Danes themselves pronounce the name of the capital in English), or , with a as in spa; Danish   IPA: ) is the capital of Denmark and the countrys largest city (metropolitan population 1,211,542 (2006)). It is also the name of the...

Allotment gardens in the Philippines

Kauswagan Allotment Garden, Cagayan de Oro

In 2003, the first allotment garden of the Philippines was established in Cagayan de Oro City, Northern Mindanao as part of a European Union funded project. ^[9] Meanwhile, with the assistance of the German Embassy in Manila and several private donors from Germany, this number has grown to five self-sustaining gardens located in different urban areas of the city, enabling a total of 55 urban poor families the legal access to land for food production. Further four allotment gardens, two of them within the premises of public elementary schools are presently being set up for additional 36 families using the Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) approach. (Health Promoting Schools, Ecological Sanitation and School Gardens in Mindanao) Some of the gardeners belong to the socially most disadvantaged group in the city, the garbage pickers of the city’s landfill site. Aside of different vegetables, the gardeners grow also herbs and tropical fruits. In some gardens, small animals are kept and fish ponds are maintained to avail the gardeners of additional protein sources for the daily dietary needs. Each allotment garden has a compost heap where biodegradable wastes from the garden as well as from the neighboring households are converted into organic fertilizer, thus contributing to the integrated solid waste management program of the city. Further, all gardens are equipped with so-called urine-diverting ecological sanitation toilets similar to practices in Danish allotment gardens described by Bregnhøj et al. ^[10] Image File history File linksMetadata Kauswagan_Allotment_Garden. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Kauswagan_Allotment_Garden. ... Cagayan de Oro (abbreviated C.D.O.) is the premier city of Northern Mindanao. ... Designated as Region X of the Philippines, Northern Mindanao (Hilagang Mindanao) is composed of five provinces and eight cities, namely: Misamis Oriental (Gingoog City and Cagayan de Oro City), Misamis Occidental (Oroquieta City, Tangub City and Ozamis City), Camiguin, Lanao del Norte (Iligan City), and Bukidnon (Malaybalay City and Valencia... Instead of focusing on a communitys needs, deficiencies and problems, Asset-Based Community Development helps them become stronger and more self-reliant by discovering, mapping and mobilizing all their local assets. ... Vegetables on a market Vegetable is a nutritional and culinary term denoting any part of a plant that is commonly consumed by humans as food, but is not regarded as a culinary fruit, nut, herb, spice, or grain. ... This article is about the plants used in cooking and medicine. ... tropical fruit A tropical fruit one that typically grows in warm climates, or equatorial areas. ... A handful of compost Compost is the aerobically decomposed remnants of organic materials (those with plant and animal origins). ... Ecological Sanitation One person produces about 500 litres of urine and only 50 litres of faeces per year. ...

Translation of "allotment gardens" into other languages

• Danish: "Kolonihave"
• Dutch: "Volkstuin"
• Finnish: "Siirtolapuutarha"
• French: "Jardins familiaux", "Jardin communautaire"
• German: "Kleingärten" or "Schrebergärten", in former times also "Armengärten", "Sozialgärten", "Arbeitergärten", "Rotkreuzgärten", "Eisenbahnergärten" but nowadays rarely used
• Italian: "Orti Sociali"
• Japanese: "クラインガルテン"
• Norwegian: "Kolonihage" or "Parsellhager"
• Polish: "Ogródki działkowe"
• Portuguese: "Hortas comunitárias"
• Spanish: "Huertas comunitarias"
• Swedish: "Koloniträdgården"
• Swiss: "Familiengärten", "Jardins familiaux"

Citations

1. ^ MacNair, E., 2002. The Garden City Handbook: How to Create and Protect Community Gardens in Greater Victoria. Polis Project on Ecological Governance. University of Victoria, Victoria BC, Canada.
2. ^ Drescher, A.W., 2001. The German Allotment Gardens — a Model for Poverty Alleviation and Food Security in Southern African Cities? Proceedings of the Sub-Regional Expert Meeting on Urban Horticulture, Stellenbosch, South Africa, January 15–19, 2001, FAO/University of Stellenbosch, 2001.
3. ^ Drescher, A.W., Holmer, R.J. and D.L. Iaquinta 2006. Urban Homegardens and Allotment Gardens for Sustainable Livelihoods: Management Strategies and Institutional Environments. In: Kumar, B.M. and Nair, P.K. (Eds) 2006. Tropical Homegardens: A Time-Tested Example of Agroforestry. Series: Advances inAgroforestry 3, Springer, New York
4. ^ Crouch, D. 2000. Reinventing Allotments for the Twenty-First Century: The UK Experience. Acta Hort. (ISHS) 523:135–142.
5. ^ Sidblad, S. 2000. Swedish Perspectives of Allotment and Community Gardening. Acta Hort. (ISHS) 523:151–160.
6. ^ Haavie, S. 2001, Parsellhagedyrking i Oslo — en statusoversikt. Rapport/Osloforskning 1/2001 (ISBN 82-8053-000-2)
7. ^ Jensen, N. 1996. Allotment Guide — Copenhagen & Surroundings /Kolonihave Guide Kobenhavn & Omegn, Copenhagen, Denmark.
8. ^ Gröning, G., Wolschke-Bulmahn, J., 1995. Von Ackermann bis Ziegelhütte, Studien zur Frankfurter Geschichte, Band 36. Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
9. ^ Holmer, R.J., Clavejo, M.T., Dongus, S., and Drescher, A., 2003. Allotment Gardens for Philippine Cities. Urban Agriculture Magazine, 11, 29-31. [1]
10. ^ Bregnhøj, H., Eilersen A.M., von Krauss, M.K., Backlund, A. 2003: Experiences with Ecosan in Danish Allotment Gardens and in Development Projects. Proceedings to 2nd International Symposium on ecological sanitation "Ecosan - closing the loop", April 7 to 11, 2003 Lübeck, Germany.[2]

Further reading

• The Allotment: Its Landscape and Culture, David Crouch and Colin Ward Paperback 314 pages (June 1, 1997), Publisher: Five Leaves Publications ISBN 0-907123-91-0
• The Allotment Handbook, Sophie Andrews, "A guide to promoting and protecting your allotment site." Publisher Ecologic Books, [3]
• The Art of Allotments, David Crouch, Publisher: Five Leaves Publications [4]
• The Allotment Chronicles: A Social History of Allotment Gardening, Steve Poole, Publisher: Silver Link Publishing, ISBN 1 85794 268 X
• Building Food Secure Neighbourhoods: the Role of Allotment Gardens, Robert J. Holmer, Axel W. Drescher: Urban Agriculture Magazine (2005), No. 15, p. 19-20 [5]

David Lance Crouch (23 June 1919 - 18 February 1998) was Conservative Party (UK) Member of Parliament for Canterbury from 1966 until he retired in 1987. ... Colin Ward (1924-) was an editor of the British anarchist newspaper Freedom from 1947 to 1960, and the founder and editor of the monthly libertarian journal Anarchy from 1961 to 1970. ...

See also

• Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD)
• Ecological sanitation
• Food security
• Gardening
• Intercultural Garden
• Leisure
• Organic gardening
• P-Patch
• Self-sufficiency
• Simple living
• Victory garden
• Urban agriculture
• Urban horticulture

The Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) is a methodology that seeks to uncover and highlight the strengths within communities as a means for sustainable development. ... Ecological Sanitation One person produces about 500 litres of urine and only 50 litres of faeces per year. ... Food security is a term used in development and humanitarian aid. ... A gardener Gardening is the art of growing plants with the goal of crafting a purposeful landscape. ... Intercultural gardens is a project of the German Association of International Gardens (), resident in Göttingen. ... An example of leisure, someone falling asleep whilst bathing in the sun. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Organic horticulture. ... A P-Patch is a parcel of property used for gardening allotments; the term is specific to Seattle, Washington. ... Autonomy is the condition of something that does not depend on anything else. ... Simple living (or voluntary simplicity) is a lifestyle individuals may pursue for a variety of motivations, such as spirituality, health, or ecology. ... WWII-era poster promoting victory gardens. ... Urban (or peri-urban) agriculture is the practice of agriculture (including crops, livestock, fisheries, and forestry activities) within or surrounding the boundaries of cities. ... // Urban and peri-urban horticulture (UPH) includes all horticultural crops grown for human consumption and ornamental use within and in the immediate surroundings of cities. ...

External links

• National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners
• Allotments4All Lively allotment related website with gallery, forum and wiki
• A Permaculture Allotment? Discussion of allotments from a permaculture perspective
• Deutsches Kleingarten Museum Website of the German Allotment Garden Museum in Leipzig
• Czech Union of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners Ceský Zahrádkárský Svaz
• Allotment Garden Association of Japan日本クラインガルテン研究会
• Allotment Garden Association of Norway Norsk Kolonihageforbund
• Swedish Federation of Leisure Gardening Svenska Förbundet för Koloniträdgardar och Fritidsbyar
• Office International du Coin de Terre et des Jardins Familiaux A European non-profit making regroupment of national allotment and leisure garden federations with more than 3.000.000 affiliated leisure gardeners and leisure garden families.
• Association of International Gardens, Göttingen
• Allotments UK is a vast information site for people who want/own an Allotment
• A Brief History of Allotments in England and Wales