June 2010
This week I gave notice on my allotment plots.
I think it is time to move on from them for a few different reasons; life is still busy especially with starting a new job. I now have a better grasp of living in a two person household and the much smaller mountains of food that so few people get through and mostly it seems a little be of a waste of resources to pay rent and travel for my allotment plots when I have a large enough garden that is just a step outside my door in the mornings and is included in the rent for my house; I think the money saved will be much better off going into my ‘hobbit-hole’ fund.
It will also relieve me of the stress, restraints and compromise of working in a communal area which although has its upside seems to be getting more in the way of me succeeding at how I would like to grow food than helping me too at the moment.
July 2010
What little bits I have grown this year are mostly in my garden at home so it will just be a case of collecting my things from my plots before handing them back for someone else to take on.
In some ways it feels like I am yet again starting from square one but I have been making plans for my garden since I moved and this will free me up to go forward with them and I have already put my first raised bed in with a spare hour I had one evening.
A Life Less Simple 
Veg growing is so much easier when it’s on your doorstep and you can see what’s ready to eat without having to travel. Sometimes I wish for more space, simply to be able to grow more of the larger plants like PSB, artichokes, cauliflowers and sweet corn; the food I grow is more of a tasty treat than a bold step towards absolute self-sufficiency but at least I’m learning and, one day perhaps, will have a large garden of my own! It seems you’ve thought it through and come to the right decision for yourself, a hard one to make when the waiting list for allotments is usually fairly long. Maybe the lists wouldn’t be so lengthy if more people thought like you!
I have just decided to do the same. I am going to use the space in my garden and the cheapie poly tunnel I brought on eBay. I saw a fab idea for using plastic bottles to hang up and grow lettuces in. I like the idea of vertical gardening to grow as much as possible.
I sometimes think that when you have a smaller space to grow veg in, it becomes more productive as you grow what you really want and not just anything to fill the space. It’s a little bit like downsizing, it’s surprised what you can do in a small space Good Luck with the garden veg growing