Welcome
to St Chad's Allotment Group
St
Chad's is a newly formed allotment group on the outskirts of
Pattingham in South Staffordshire. With a few like minded people,
we started in 2009 with a fallow field left in trust to our local
Church. From there, and with lots of hard work, and assistance
from the Parish Council, plus a recent lottery grant, we now
have a valuable & much improved local community space, to
grow soft fruit, vegetables and flowers for our families.
The site consists of 45 full plots, 6 half plots and a new raised
bed area for those that cannot manage a full space. We are a
social group, active fund raisers and always interested in learning
about new things horticultural. The site is surrounded by countryside
and there is an adjacent nature reserve where sightings of birds
of prey & animals are common. Wisely though, we decided not
to be too friendly with rabbits, so we are rabbit fence protected
along our boundaries! There is an abundance of 'edible hedging'
around our borders, largely damsons, blackberries and sloes.
To further compliment this we are adding hazel, crab apple &
dog rose hedging, thanks to a recent award from the Woodland
Trust. We are very fortunate indeed to have such a place to look
after and intend to keep it to a high standard.
We wanted the site to be accessible for as many people as possible,
and in 2010 were awarded a lottery grant for our 'Action for
Access' project. This has given a tremendous boost to the site,
and with some hard work and valuable time given by the Committee,
we now have an improved site entrance and car park, new boundary
& rabbit proof fencing, a new shed and community space, as
well as a raised bed area with surrounding pathways and water
point. We have also picked up some useful skills and tips along
the way!
Have a look
at our photo
gallery
to see the beautiful vegetables and flowers we grow and to see
how we have progressed during 2010/2011.
Have a look at our advice page, we are only too glad
to pass our tips on to you. We learned in the summer how to encourage
bees and beneficial insects to the site & garden, and how
to make a bee hotel costing just a few pennies. We are affiliated
to NSALG (National Society of Allotment & Leisure Gardeners)
there is a link for tips and advice from them on our links
page
Have a look
at our newsletter
page
to catch up with our involvement in Village activities.
Would you like to join us? If you are new to growing or
maybe unsure of the commitment, you can 'buddy up' with
a plot holder for a short taster session to see what allotmenteering
it is all about! Get in touch with the Secretary (contacts
page)
You can put your name on our waiting list, and can be involved
in any future talks/training sessions we have. We can also put
you in touch with other allotment groups in the area.
2013
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