Top tips Why allotments are good for you

It's National Allotments Week and they are great for our wellbeing, so let's celebrate that, says HANNAH STEPHENSON

- HANNAH STEPHENSON

HAVING an allotment isn't just about growing fruit and veg; it's about physical and mental wellbeing and social connection.

So say experts, as this year's National Allotments Week (an annual awareness event organised by the National Allotment Society) focuses on the wellbeing benefits of these bountiful patches of land.

So, if you're in need of a mental and physical pick-me-up, consider the ways in which allotments might aid your overall wellbeing.

THEY HELP PEOPLE CONNECT

Gardening expert Kim Stoddart, author of The Climate Change Resilient Vegetable Garden, who began running a community garden project at Creuddyn in Ceredigion, Wales, after the pandemic, found that initially volunteers were struggling to connect.

"There's still a sense of that in the world at large, but communities bring people together and gardens bring people together," says Kim, whose also the editor of Amateur Gardening magazine.

"There's such a strong sense of togetherness through the ability to nurture an allotment in a community environment. They are such important social hubs and can help with socialisation, alleviate loneliness and anxiety and worries about the world. They are beautiful places where people can come together and feel that the world is OK."

THEY ENCOURAGE HEALTHY EATING

If managed properly, an allotment can produce enough food to supplement a family's weekly shop with fresh fruit and vegetables throughout the year, according to gardening for health charity Thrive.