How it all started

I live in Cubbington, which is also where I was born and grew up, and as a little girl I can remember my nan and grandad having an allotment on this very site. I am one of nine children, and throughout my childhood I was a regular visitor to the allotment, and my earliest memory is of sitting in the pea patch, shelling the peas, but eating more than we kept!

Our village church

My nan used to feed us with the produce from the allotment, and there was a constant stream of goodies, including, home made apple pies, various jams and fruity chutneys, all of which were delicious. A particular favourite of mine was the plum jam, which I used to enjoy on some nice fresh bread, and I remember that my nan always used to leave the stones in it. Sweets were scarce in those days but a stick of rhubarb with a bag of sugar was a more than adequate replacement, and was also a real treat! 

When nan and grandad passed away, my dad took on the allotment, and when it became too much for him, he retired, and my youngest brother Simon took it on. Simon sadly passed away in January 2010, so I decided to take on the allotment, with help from my sisters, and my eldest brother Christopher, and my dad also came out of retirement to boss us about. The idea was for the allotment to provide a wide variety of home grown produce, and to be a place where the whole family could meet up. We also invested in some chickens, a brand new hen house, and a rather boisterous cockerel called George, and we were soon producing a regular supply of fresh eggs as well.

Christopher finished building the shed that Simon had started, and between us we soon had the allotment ship shape, then earlier this year another plot became available. This was a much sought after plot, nicknamed "The Orchard", and we asked if we could also take this on as well. To our delight, the answer was yes, so we now have two very productive allotments ... I think we are going to be busy!