Alan Selwyn writes:
I’d occasionally walked past this nondescript wooden door with its tattered name, on Fellows Road opposite the junction with Eton Road, and wondered what laid behind. Well, it opened on a recent Sunday in June as part of the National Garden Scheme and revealed all: a secret one-acre mosaic of 43 abundant allotment plots, woodland, a couple of ponds, flower beds, various sheds, greenhouses and an apiary, run as a community gardening club. Members of all ages and backgrounds were busy serving teas, delicious cakes and light lunches from their clubhouse, whilst others were selling plants and some tasty-looking liquid manure. There was even a delightful art show.
It really was a little paradise, sandwiched between the backs of houses on Adelaide Road and Fellows Road. The community garden has been in existence for nearly 50 year and is run as a cooperative under the auspices of Primrose Hill Community Association.
Having lived in this area for nearly 40 years it was a surprising new discovery and even more that I could join the club as an Associate member for just £15 a year. If I volunteer for the minimum 4 sessions through the seasons, I might even be able to be given access to a small allotment – after passing a probation with a mini-allotment to test my commitment. Compared to all the closed waiting lists for local allotments, such as Antrim Grove, this seems like a wonderful opportunity to ‘grow my own’!
So, my wife and I have both joined and will look forward to buying a key (another £10) for free access to this haven. We’ll be keen to meet the other members and hopefully graduate, in time, to our own plot.
We’ll join a volunteer gang soon and may even see some of you at the second open day on September 13th 1.30-5.30pm (free entry but buy a tea or plant to support the NGS Charity).
If you haven’t visited before, prepare to be enchanted!
