River Cottage Spring River Cottage - your questions answered

Date Published:

04/06/2008

River Cottage host, Steven Lamb, answers all your home grown queries from the practical to the political.

Does what happened in Bristol with the land apply to all councils? I'm concerned that because I'm not a celebrity TV chef I won't be taken as seriously. And can all six people be from the same family?

The best way for me to answer this is to point you to the 'Act' that was un-earthed during the research for the Bristol shoot. It's a bit 'wordy' but we have lots of other useful information on the River Cottage website.

Under the 1908 Small Holdings and Allotments Act, where there is "demand" (to be determined by each respective Council), it is the duty of the local authority to provide residents, registered on the electoral roll, with allotment space. The Act even gives local authorities the power to compulsorily acquire land for allotments, if they don't have sufficient already.

The National Society for Allotments and Leisure Gardens (NSALG) is the largest and longest established organisation promoting allotments in England and Wales, and it's the only such organisation with which the government liaises on the subject. NSALG argues that 'demand' is defined in the act as six registered residents, living within the local authority area.

NSALG argues that if six qualifying residents get together and write to their council requesting allotment space, then the council is bound to consider such application providing the applicant residents fulfil all criteria set out in the Act. The eligibility requirements and processes are relatively simple, however if in doubt please contact your local council, NSALG, and/or seek independent legal advice.

As always, there are exceptions. The Act covers England and Wales - but not Scotland, and a later law made inner city London exempt. Having said that, the Greater London Authority has a website to help people find their nearest plots in the city.

Can Hugh please confirm that the beautiful ex-vegetarian expressed the desire to eat meat at her wedding as we heard on the programme, or has he been "trying" to get her to eat meat again against her wishes?

Susan certainly did express the desire to eat meat and the sequence was going to culminate in her eating meat at her wedding. Her main drive for doing so was that her husband to be is a very keen carnivore and that she wanted to rekindle her liking for eating meat. Susan managed to eat meat throughout her 'apprenticeship' without any pressure and certainly not against her wishes. It was decided by all involved that we didn't need to follow the sequence through to the original ending and so Susan enjoyed a happy private wedding day. There is no stigma attached to being a vegetarian at River Cottage, it is all about people having principles about good food with integrity regarding provenance. In fact we have several events per year based on vegetables for growing and eating.

I will hopefully be getting my allotment in the summer. Is there anything I can start growing straight away or will I have to wait until the spring?

If things work in your favour and you do end up getting your allotment, there are certainly some things you can get growing straight away. There is a caveat to this though and I am assuming that the plot will not require clearing or landscaping. If this is the case then why not try your hand at sowing some lovely winter salads. Here at River Cottage we grow most of the oriental greens such as Pak Choi, Mizuna and Mibuna, all of which can be sown from the end of June through to the end of September (you can keep on sowing through into the winter if you have a polytunnel or greenhouse).

What’s the most humane but effective way to get rid of slugs and snails as I have both in my garden?

The most humane way to remove slugs and snails is to pick them up and move them away from your allotment. Throwing them onto your neighbours patch is not an option! They are most active at night so this might involve waiting up with a torch. However there have been varying successful methods employed at River Cottage such as beer traps. A small container can be used which is put into a hole in the soil so the opening is level with the surface. Put a couple of inches of beer into the can. The odour is attractive to slugs and so they crawl in the hole then drown. You'll need to remove trapped slugs daily, and replace the liquid every four days. This is quite a labour intensive method. Barrier methods such as copper tapes or rings are effective if you use pots to plant in or raised beds. They cause a reaction with the slug's mucus - sort of like an electric shock - and that repels the slugs. You do have to make sure that you are not keeping slugs in with this method so a quick slug audit every evening would be good practice. A variety of wildlife eats slugs, but these animals are probably difficult to use for effective slug control in gardens. Many gardeners, however, successfully use domestic ducks, geese, or chickens to keep slug numbers down. These birds like young seedlings and need to be managed so that they don't also eat your garden.

Can I have a bonfire on my allotment? Or do I need to ask anyone in the council or get approval of some sort? And when is the best time to have one, is one season better than another?

Contact your local Council, who'll be able to let you know or talk to some of the current allotment holders to see if anyone can confirm whether it is the case. Every allotment site has a Site Rep – usually a volunteer – who acts as a point of contact between allotment holders, the community and the Council. They may be able to give you an idea.

If you are allowed then metal incinerators are the best option which also means you can use the ashes to spread on the soil once they have cooled. The best time to avoid having a fire is in the height of summer when there are lots of dry materials around which could catch fire accidently. You may want to check that your neighbours don't have their weekly washing hanging out to dry – particularly as most allotments tend to be in built up urban areas. In short, make sure you are being responsible in terms of safety.

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