Saving the Allotment

        

Allotment holders’ bid to save plots from housing plan.

Allotment holders across Oxford defiantly said they would dig for victory in the battle to save their plots from the treat of new houses.

Planners have identified three allotment sites on which 400 homes could be built in a confidential list of potential sites if demand for housing continues to soar. These new housing plans will spell disaster for what little green space is still left in Oxford. At a time when growing your own food is seen as increasingly important for people’s health and the environment we need to be opening more land for allotments, not slapping housing on ones that already exists. With the ever increasing demand for new housing the battle lies between the need for housing, as against protecting our important green spaces. In 2000 the city council, which rents allotments directly to associations, agreed a standard lease agreement until 2021 – effectively meaning allotments are free from development for another 14 years.

Most of the 36 city council-owed plots are bound by long-term leases, meaning they are free from development until at least 2020.

Allotments are incredibly valuable spaces. In addition to growing your own tasty vegetables which saves on carbon miles as the vegetables are locally grown rather than grown abroad, they keep you fit, are educational and save you money.

Garden Worms make healthy gardens and compost

Earthworms are essential underground workers in our garden.

They eat decaying plant material namely leaves, and are important to soil structure and fertility. Most earthworms emerge under the safety of darkness and feed on fallen plant material on the surface, and drag fallen leaves and other plant debris into their tunnels.

There are 16 species of earthworms and it’s the Tiger worm that is most commonly used in wormeries, as its activities speed up the composting process.

The wormcasts which appear in the beautiful lawn or gravel paths are what people least like.

Wormcasts consist of soil excretes after the worms have fed on organic matter. The best way to get rid of the wormcast is to wait until they dry out than then simply brush them away with a strong bristled brush.

It is illegal to kill worms intentionally.

You can get worms to turn your kitchen and other vegetable waste into beautiful compost by having a wormery.

For the best advice about wormeries have a look at Wiggly Wigglers who know everything there is to know about Wormeries as well as sell them.

You can see a time lapse of a wormery in the articles section of www.rightplants4me.co.uk