[gmankev]

Hi,
This is my first post, so apologies if this has been discussed elsewhere.

I am really interested in knowing if anyone else would be interested in forming a food growing coop to lease some land from a landowner and growing food on it as a club or co-op basis.

There is a lof of people interested in allotments, but to me I think they are a bit expensive, and there would be much more benefits in a group of like minded people

- forming a coop / club
- finding a suitable piece of land and doing a multiyear lease with the landowner,
- with club subscriptions perhaps paying the cost land and other expenses
- hiring the assistance of a "pro" gardener/horticulturist to monitor the garden during the week.. (could be the farmer)
- arranging a planting and working schedule
-deciding on what crops are to be done as mains

Coming together as club, we could still charge subs. but use the money to pay for the land, some ground development, water charges, and the assistance of a professional gardener. Members would be expected to commit some days per month to work. Work would be arranged based on what needs planting, weeding or harvesting..

There would be space for "maincrops" e.g potatoes, onions carrots whatever and also space for individual allotments for people who want something different. The land should be located within reasonable distance of the members area.

I have seen this work in a city in the south of france, a friend of mine is a member of such a a coop, she pays 250 euros per year, the coop use that money to pay for land leases and also hire a gardener for 2 days per week. The gardener takes care of monitoring the "farm" and arranges a lot of the heavy digging. She says she works one saturday every 6 weeks and has fresh and stored veg for the whole year.

I think this is good idea, allowing people to
- benefit in growing their own
- comradeship in a club environment
- mantain a garden without having to commit to weekly "chores"

I do see this as complimentary to dedicated allotments and also community gardens, but it gives a more structured support.

I want to explore this more with people who are interested with the idea to get this running in the next year.

Kev

[Foxylock]

It sounds like a great idea Kev but how would one deal with slackers, also what price would have to be paid. 250 quid would buy a lot of fruit and veg in a shop !! Sorry don't mean to be the pessimist but as they say in Dragons den " I'm out " All the best in your venture.

[gmankev]

Hi,
we dont aim to grow "shop" vegetables. Its more like your own stuff, organic, fresh as you like it. Its basically treating gardening as club co-op activity and getting much better value than allotments prices.

I would think allotments need planning and some sort of development. With the method I propose, we are basically farming...ok with some add ons of hardstand, shed to store tools and toilet facilities. We would lease the land for a number of years and aim to supply a full years supply of veg all year round for ourselves the members. The addition of a gardening pro should cut down on the mistakes and makes sure all members are able to contribute equally.

Kevin