Home | Dalbeattie Community Allotments Association
How it all began...A short History
Dalbeattie Community Allotments Association came into being at a meeting held in Dalbeattie Town Hall on 16 April 2008 which was attended by 19 people.From that meeting a Committee was formed to drive the Project forward, with the aim being, that Dalbeattie would once again have its own allotment site.
Over the next two years the Committee explored a variety of options to try to turn that dream into a reality, and although they encountered numerous obstacles setbacks and frustrations along the way, they were not deterred from their main aim of providing an allotment site for Dalbeattie.
The Association were given a huge helping hand when a private landowner, very generously offered an opportunity to enter into a long term lease on land just on the edge of town. The lease was to be for 25 years at £1 per year , and needless to say it was gratefully accepted.
On Friday 30th April 2010 the lease was signed, and on Saturday May 1st work began on the site.
‘People Power’ then took over and a remarkable transformation occurred. Through sheer determination, goodwill, and masses of hard physical work, an allotment began to emerge, and within six weeks we had gone from an empty field to an operational allotment, with members tending to their plots while still helping to develop the site for others.
It was that kind of community spirit which helped attract the attention of numerous local sponsors who helped both financially and practically, and an emormous debt of gratitude is owed to them all for the vital part they played. Of particular note was an extremely generous donation of £5,000.00 from the Rotary Club of Dalbeattie (the Jim Eaves bequest)Today (2nd April 2011) it is still less than a year since work began on that empty field but we now have 48 productive plots, an array of sheds, poly tunnels, raised beds and compost bins, all tended by people from the Town. We also have a sizeable waiting list, such is the demand for this type of community resource.
We have also become something of a benchmark for other allotment projects throughout Dumfries and Galloway, and have been visited on numerous occasions by enthusiastic groups who would like to learn from our experiences and achieve similar success.
As a new ‘growing season’ gets underway and gardening tools get their first outings after a long and hard winter, future developments are being discussed, and things hopefully will continue to move on from strength to strength. We are particularly excited about the possibility of extending the allotments even further.
(Information and photos supplied by Jim Fallon, Treasurer of Dalbeattie Community Allotments Association. July 5 2011. For a full pictorial account of the developtment of the allotments click here)
Update July 2011
Work on the new extension is underway.
Update August 2012
Extension completed and up and running, This now makes a total of 74 productive allotment plots at Biggar's Garden. More