Starting a Zero Waste, Eco-friendly Allotment.

“The more money you spend on an allotment in the first year, the more likely you are to fail.”

That’s what my Mum always says. She’d see people starting a new allotment, buying a pretty shed and an expensive greenhouse, knowing it won’t be long before both are abandoned. “I don’t mean to sound negative” she laughs but real gardeners get down to the growing and worry about the rest later. Others get excited by spending money.

She’s right, money never did grow an allotment and it defeats the object in my mind. Allotments were started so families could become more self sufficient, grow their own veg, “dig for victory”. They’re there for those of us not blessed with the luxury of a large outdoor space at home and have always been a place that are (in my mind) beautifully put together with random bits and bobs. Green houses made of old window panes, flowers growing out of old barrels and broken swing seats to sit on. I think they are therefore the most perfect place to go zero waste.

Don’t get me wrong though, I’ll always lust over a beautiful wooden greenhouse….

So where should you start on your new allotment, with a small budget and the idea on being sustainable at the same time.

1. Make a rough plan.

It doesn’t have to be set in stone but it’s a good idea to make a rough plan before you start laying out beds.

Things to think about.

Where might you put a shed of a greenhouse.
Even if your not going to get one anytime soon think about where they might go. That way you won’t plant a tree in the perfect place your shed might go. Or waste time making beds on that space. If you plan to get your shed in a year or so you can cover the area with cardboard or old pieces plastic to control the weeds while you work on the rest of the plot.
Where to plant fruit trees.
A spot that with receive good sun and not shade other veg beds.
Make space for compost bins.
You would be surprised at how much compost just a little plot with create.

2. Start by controlling the weeds.

This is the number one. If you don’t get on top of the weeds quickly it will be an uphill struggle and a never ending battle. Of course you will always have to weed, there’s no magic cure, not even a chemical one that’s going to stop them growing forever, but there are a lot of sustainable techniques that can help you.

The first being “No Dig.”

I’m a massive fan of No Dig. Not only is it better for soil health and the environment, it’s so much easier and just simply makes a lot of sense.

Below: Our allotment before we started work.

A clear but weedy and bare new allotment project. starting no dig

Start by stimming back your allotment and clearing as much as you can without digging it up.
This is best done in autumn if possible because the weeds won’t grow back quiet as quickly, will give you time to get things covered and your no dig beds made.
Find ALOT of cardboard.
This can be done easily for free. You only really want the brown stuff. The bigger the carboard box the better. Local shops will have loads of the stuff, so just ask. I even saw a huge pile of perfect boxes stacked outside the back of Mcdonalds. Keep your eyes peeled and ask around.
Cover the ground with a thick layer of carboard (double layer if you think it’s super weedy ground) making sure you over lap the edges so weeds are less likely to get through. If your doing this in summer or a dry climate you might want to water the cardboard to help it start breaking down. In England in autumn/winter like when I’m doing this wetting it is not necessary.
Mark your beds out.
I’ve gone with long beds right across the width of my allotment, 4 foot wide, with 2 foot wide foot paths in between. This is a good width for reaching the middle of the bed from either side and maximizes space by not having extra paths going down the middle. Though that of course is personal preference. Decide what works best for you.
Now add your organic matter.
Weather you choose compost or manure add a good thick layer around 2-4 inches deep covering your marked out bed. You can start planting straight into this. Yes even manure. Many told me things wouldn’t grow in this and the cardboard until it had really broken down over the winter but I found the cardboard broke down quickly and plants thrived.
You can source manure very cheaply. Lots of local farmers will deliver for a small fee. You can also buy green waste compost from your local council, though you will have to pick this up or bulk buy peat free compost. Which can be delivered to. This will get you started cheaply until you start making your own compost. Though I have found it hard to make enough compost to cover my entire plot and still buy in manure. We can buy enough manure for 3 plots for about £35, which is great value in my opinion.
Make the paths.
I’ve made my paths with wood chips as advised by the guru of no dig Charles Dowding. This is a good medium because it will suppress weeds, and break down over time feeding the soil beneath, so though not directly feeding your plants, feeding the micro biome in the soil and indirectly helping your plants grow.

Below: The first no dig bed made. 4 foot wide and stretching the width of our allotment. Made with cardboard and organic manure.

Carboard laid over weedy grass topped with manure for a no dig allotment bed.

Thing to remember when buying zero waste organic manure/compost/mulch.

Remember to check that the compost or manure you are buying is organic and peat free. Horses may graze in non-organic pastures where weed killers have been used this could then affect the growth of your plants. We also know the terrible environmental impact of peat so please make sure you buy peat free compost.

3. Make Your ALLOTMENT low maintance.

While an allotment is always going to be high maintenance whatever you do (forget the house work and other jobs, you have an allotment now) there are many ways we can keep some jobs down and make them simpler. That way the time you do spend there will be productive and not just constantly trying to keep on top of things, because those weeds will take over quickly if you let them.

Keep it “no dig”

I believe starting out your allotment the no dig way as I have documented above to control the initial amount of overwhelming weeds is the way to carry on.

Of course your always going to get weeds and will need to weed as you go throughout the year but by adding your compost or mulches to the top of the soil year on year you will not only improve the soil more and more season upon season it will suppress new weeds coming up and gradually get rid of the awful perennial weeds you likely inherited with your new allotment. These are weeds like bind weed that are near impossible to get rid of, but keep at it they will eventually be tamed.

Keep the soil covered.

The ground does not like to be bare. Plants feed the soil the same way the soil feeds the plants, that’s why weeds will take over bare soil quickly, it’s the earth trying to heal itself. Think of nature, you so rarely see bare soil, it’s because it shouldn’t be. Clearing things, leaving them bare is very much a human thing. Trying to make things look tidy.

There’s serval ways you can do this year round by covering beds your not currently using. This can be done with

A mulch, such a compost or manure.
Adding a winter cover crop, also known as green manure. Phacelia, buckwheat, vetch and clovers. These will suppress weeds, improve soil structure and reduce soil erosion.
Cover with cardboard or black plastic. Obviously reusing something you already have to keep it zero waste, this is an effective way of blocking the light out to stop the weeds growing if you don’t want to grow anything over the winter. This is also a good idea if your taking on a new allotment. Cover some and grow on some.
Tidy less. All those fallen leaves and spent plants. Don’t rush to clear them away. Like the natural cycles of the forest floor, leaves and plants fall, break down, taking the nutrients back into the ground and the cycle behinds again. Things don’t always have to look perfectly tidy and that’s okay. This is the low maintenance gold for me.3.

Below: Covering the ground with black plastic once destined for the tip. This will block out light and kill weeds stopping the allotment becoming over grown while we focused on other areas for growing.

A bare allotment with one section covers in black plastic. No Dig

Below: Our allotment when we first took over, a lot of pallets left by the previous tenant, we used these to build compost bins and offered the rest up for free to other allotment owners.

4. Add only organic matter.

My garden and allotment are all organic but that to me includes not even buying any organic products. This makes it low maintenance because I’m relaying on nature to control things for me.

Let me explain…

Nature knows what it’s doing. Its a cycle.

If I spray something on my roses to stop the aphids at the beginning of the spring, sure it might be an organic product that may not directly harm the environment but it then means there are no aphids for the lady birds to feed on (who are beneficial to us) and so on. Nature has the perfect balance and it is our job to trust that.

Plus even organic pest controls or fertilizes need to come in plastic bottles so if we pledge to just trust nature we reduce our plastic too.

Though sometimes you may find you need something to stop your precious veg being eaten in which case have a read of “Zero Waste, Organic, Free Insecticides.”

5. Choose easy plants or start an mini orchard.

We have 4 children, 2 under the age of 4. Life is busy, I cannot be at our allotment as much as I would like. It’s why I’ll be planting things next season that A. take up space, (this is so more ground is covered, therefore less weeds can grow up. Plus it looks prettier with less effort) or perennial plants that will come back year on year. Fruit trees and bushes tick both of those boxes.

A bed of raspberry plants, 2 fruit trees (a pear and a plum) that are already on our new allotment, plus a couple I will add. A bed of herbs (which are very low maintenance and will cover the ground well). Another bed for strawberry plants and some different fruits like my favourite Cape Gooseberries. These bushes take up a lot of space and are fun for kids to pick.

6. Build your compost bins.

Though I have and would recommend smaller lidded compost bins for your home garden they wouldn’t work as well on an allotment. Go big if you can. I have gone with a three compost bay system made from pallets. Nothing fancy you can simply tie them together, which also makes it easy for turning and emptying them. A three bay system means I can fill one, let it sit while I fill the second. The turn the first one into the third. Turning your compost will help it break down quicker. Then start filling the first again. For more details on this system and why it works so well especially on an allotment where you have more space and a lot of organic matter to compost have a watch of Charles Dowding video you can find here.

Read: “How to Make More Compost and Cut Family Waste.”

"Bokashi Composting 101”

Hand with gardening glove, holding a fist full of compost.

7. You don’t need to tackle your new allotment all at once.

An entire allotment can be overwhelming. Even if you spend the winter months making no dig bed (which is a relatively easy thing to do) come spring it can be a struggle to keep on top of everything or know where to start. But remember you don’t have to do it all at once. Source some old black plastic (I found our builder throwing some out) or use carboard to cover up a section of your allotment. This way it won’t become over grown while your not focusing on it and just start a little smaller area.

8. Source secondhand structures.

Sourcing them is the easy bit. Check out your allotment notice board, Facebook marketplace, free cycle. If someone wants rid of a greenhouse, shed, or poly tunnel they will happily give them for free or not too much as long as you come and dismantle it and take it away. That’s the tricky bit. Unless of course your good at doing that kind of thing. I’m not and neither is my partner so it’s about talking other friends and family into helping us.

9. Utilize winter.

Don’t wait until spring to get down the allotment. Winter is key to getting ahead. Make your beds, mulch, add woodchips to the paths, prune trees, cover ground, paint the shed. Do this and spring/ summer will suddenly be so much easier with more time to grow. Plus a sunny winters day in the right clothing is an absolute treat for the soul but its surprising how many neighbours on my allotment do not come down to their plot once in the colder months.

10.Get creative.

Allotments don’t have to look perfect, that’s the beauty of them. The veg and flowers will take care of the prettiness but it can be fun to get a little creative. Paint your shed a funky colour, gets some acrylic pens to let the kids decorate the compost bin.

Bring height to your plot with archways to grow beans, peas or squashes up. Find pretty nick naks or placks with your plot number. Unlike your garden you can be a little bit more creative and random with your allotment (unless of course that’s your style for your garden then brill).

And most of all don’t panic. Let it sit for a while, watch it, learn from it. Don’t go head long in, try to solve poor soil or failed growing attempts with plastic bottles and fertilizers. Remember these are all quick fixes that won’t help you in the long run and certainly won’t help the environment. Trust nature and natural process and also have some fun with it all….