Land and garden share
18 November 2008
A ground-breaking garden share scheme run by a town in Devon has inspired similar projects across the country to match would-be gardeners with unused land that they can cultivate.
Lou Brown started the Totnes Gardenshare Scheme after her own experience of being a keen gardener, yet living in rented accommodation without access to a garden of her own. Now, she matches people who want to grow their own veg, with people who have land but can't use it – a role she describes as 'a bit like a gardeners' dating agency'.
'Everyone's got involved – working parents who have two kids and haven't time to garden as they'd like, or older people who used to garden but can't any more,' she explains. 'We have quite a few seasoned gardeners – and we have some beginners, too.'
Participants go through a stringent vetting scheme including interviews, signed contracts and a fee for public liability insurance. 'By the time they get to that stage those people who are going to drop out have already done so,' says Lou.
The scheme began early in 2008, and by the end of the season had grown from three gardens to 21. All are taking part in 2009 as well, and the scheme is even beginning to expand beyond the boundaries of Totnes. Gardeners in other towns are starting similar schemes; and a visit to Totnes also inspired TV chef and food campaigner Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall to set up a national gardenshare scheme, called Landshare.
'Whether it's a back garden, or a farmer who can spare a quarter of an acre near the edge of a village, or a company who owns a bit of waste ground they're not using for the next couple of years, if they can let people use it to grow vegetables, then brilliant,' says Hugh.
With waiting lists for allotments lengthening across the country, gardenshare schemes could be key to unlocking fallow land for grow-your-own enthusiasts to use, Lou believes.
'The idea is to grow local food resilience through access to land,' she says. 'But it's also about long-term community relationships as well as gardening.'
Find out more information about the Totnes garden share scheme