Author: A Place To Grow Your Own

Present: Wendy Gunter (Acting Chair), Sue Jones, Mike Powell, Gordon Goldsmith, Martin Pasek

Apologies: Lewis Evans, Richard Masterman (Chair) (Meeting chaired by Wendy Gunter, Acting Chair)

Previous Minutes, matters arising:

There are still anomalies with bills. It appears that some recent tenants have neither been added to the list nor billed. Sue emphasised that she delivered all the relevant paperwork in person to the Allotments Officer. PPAA still pursuing with the Council.

Chairman’s Report by email:

1. Site security

• Wildlife cameras: the test camera has been removed from its temporary location to be repositioned, and a second camera will be purchased for the main entrance.
• Based on Allotment Officer’s email of 17^th Nov 2023, Richard has instructed D&S Fabrications to get going with the anti-climb gate alterations.

2. Shop

• Potatoes, onions and garlic have been ordered. Expected on site 26/27 Feb.

Site Secretary’s report (shared role):

Sue has let six plots and there are seven more to be let. The waiting list has been updated and stands at very roughly a hundred. There has been one application for a structure.

Poly tunnel bed allocations:

The applicants number more than double the number of beds. The draw for the six beds will take place soon and the recording will be available for viewing. The lucky six will be notified, and on receipt of the £5 maintenance contribution from each, their bed will be allocated to them.

Riverside Community Garden:

PPAA understand that talks between RCG, the Council, and Cardiff Salad Garden are ongoing in relation to their proposed collaboration, but nothing new has been heard since the last PPAA meeting.

AGM:

It was resolved that the 2024 PPAA AGM should provisionally be held on Sunday 12th May.

Plot Inspections:

Inspections for neglected, overgrown, and other problematic plots will resume in May.

AOB:

There was no further business and the meeting ended at 1958.

The next PPAA Committee meeting is scheduled for Tuesday 5th March 2024 at 1900, at the Butcher’s Arms, Canton.

Present:  Richard Masterman (Chair), Sue Jones, Wendy Gunter (Treasurer), Martin Pasek, Mike Powell, Lewis Evans, Gordon Goldsmith

Apologies:  Rob Loxton

Previous Minutes:

Meeting date 5^th December 2023: Previously approved. 

Actions from previous meeting

Items to be addressed as the agenda.

Chair Report 

Items to be addressed as the agenda.

Site Representative 

• Council.

1. Some confusion had arisen over duplicate tenancy bills issued by the Council who had subsequently apologised for the error. Only one should have been issued.

However, plot holders are reminded that if they have not received a bill from the Council for the 2024, then they should notify the Council to avoid possible complications regarding non-payment of rent. This situation might arise with a change of address, for instance. Sue stated that she was aware of six plot holders who haven’t yet received their invoice.

2. Disappointingly, despite email and voicemail messages to the Allotment Officer no replies have been forthcoming regarding several important issues.

• PPAA

As agenda

Treasurer’s report

• Wendy reported that the £5.00 PPAA annual subscription had been received from some plot holders and requested all bank transfers be labelled with the plot holder’s name, plot number and “subs.” A reminder notice has been published on the website.

Site Security

• Richard has forwarded to the Allotment Officer contractor Risk Assessment and site services drawings regarding extra security measures for the south gate (polytunnel). No response has been received and it was noted that a previous email had given approval so work will now be implemented.
• The contractor will be asked for a proposal to modify the key access for the egress side of the   north gate (Western Ave) to improve usability and to supply a new handle for the 4-wheel trolley. Richard to discuss with the contractor.
• A wildlife camera has been trialled near the polytunnel and various images were viewed including a persistent fox and multiple squirrel/wood pigeon. Day and night picture quality was considered acceptable and it was agreed to continue with a few adjustments, principally to focus the camera on the south gate and to find a more secure location.
• A second camera will be procured for the north gate.

Plot Inspections

• No response has been received from the Council regarding the plot termination referrals. Richard to enquire if the Council have taken any action.

Plot Vacancies, letting and structure applications.

• Sue reported that there are currently four vacant plots but the waiting list from the Council is out of date. 

Poly tunnel allocations 2024

• 6 grow beds will become available in February 2024. Plot holders who are interested in entering the draw for a bed must apply via the allotment Gmail by the end of January. Outgoing occupants need to be clear by the end of January.
• Those interested should contact PPAA Committee
• The woodwork for the 6 original beds is in poor state. Sue to investigate rebuilding. 
• Dan Phillips has agreed to continue to coordinate the polytunnel group.

Shop

• Seed potatoes have been ordered. A notice will be posted on the site notice boards and website giving details and inviting expressions of interest from plot holders.

Any Other Business

• It was noted that the Community Gardens run by Grow Cardiff are investigating a partnership with Cardiff Salad Garden to assist with scheme management. Both parties are developing a joint plan in conjunction with the Council which will be shared with the Committee in due course.  The Committee have requested procedural guidance from the Council.
• The 2024 AGM will be scheduled for April/May dependant on formalisation of PPAA accounts.
• Richard to contact Dan Phillips to ask if he is interested in coordinating a plant sale as he did for 2023.

Date of next meeting

19:00 Tuesday 6^th February 2024 at Butcher’s Arms Canton.

Present: 

Sue Jones (acting Chair), Wendy Gunter (Treasurer), Gordon Goldsmith, Martin Pasek.  

Apologies: 

Richard Masterman (Chair), Mike Powell, Rob Loxton, Lewis Evans.

Actions from previous minutes:

All covered under relevant agenda items.

Chair Report by email from Richard Masterman:

1. Actions from meeting 7^th Nov covered by agenda items
2. Council meeting of Site Reps 15^th Nov

• Richard’s earlier email of 18^th Nov reported [the Council proposed raising the age at which the 50% discount in plot rental would apply from sixty to sixty-five. However, on consultation with sites, and in their email of 5th December we are informed that they have now decided against doing this. The possibility of charging sites for water was also raised in that email, but that could not – it appears – apply for PPA until the present LMA expired in 2026 at the earliest]

3. Site security

• Richard has procured a wildlife camera and is currently trialling it in his front garden.

Initial comment is that it is not commercial CCTV standard, but might provide some reassurance to concerned plot holders.

• Celia has approved the work to improve gate security but requires contractor Risk Assessments and site services details. Risk Assessments awaited from the contractor and will be forwarded to Celia together with previously used site services plans highlighted to show the work area. There is a Dwr Cymru underground main the vicinity but no ground excavations are anticipated.

4. Plot inspections

• Nothing further from the Council [Sue will now email John Maidment, Head Of Parks – AP Sue]

5. An order has been placed for seed potatoes to be delivered spring 2024. A web notice will be issued shortly requesting advance orders.

Site Rep’s Report – shared role:

There has been a recent CAHA (Cardiff Allotment Holders Association) meeting, but no one from PPAA was able to attend and no minutes have as yet been received.

Treasurer’s Report:

Wendy reported that the £5,000 invoice for the removal of the large fly-tipping heap had been settled.

The Committee thanked Wendy for organising this work.

Any Other Business:

1. Plot vacancies, lettings: three plots have become vacant, viewings for new tenants TBA. AP Sue.

2. Hedgehog boxes: six have now been positioned about the site with the kind help of a plot holder.

3. 2024 Poly tunnel bed allocations: Dan Phillips has agreed to continue as poly tunnel co-ordinator with the Committee overseeing the Draw. Publicity wording etc. have been received from Dan and PPAA will pass this on.

4. Water trough clean-out: four of the eleven have been done and thanks go to the respective three plot holders for this work.

5. Overflowing culvert: in spite of the heavy recent rains Road Three still remains clear of mud.

6. Riverside Community Gardens: PPAA are awaiting further information from the Council about the proposed co-operation between RCG and Cardiff Salad Garden. (PPAA are required to exercise Due Diligence in ensuring parity of compliance with the Terms Of Tenancy between RCG and all other tenants on the site.)

7. Improving usability of the north gate: many plot holders complain of difficulty in inserting their keys from the inside. A modification to ease this problem was discussed. 

There was no further business and the meeting ended at 2018.

Date Of Next Meeting:

9th January 2024 at the Butcher’s Arms, Canton, at 1900.

Plot holders might be forgiven for thinking that PPAA Committee had given up on this programme of works, but that’s not the case. Affordability always meant that it would have to be done in stages, as funds became available, and covid 19 regulations imposed a long pause too.

There were also other problems, e.g. the contractors’ requiring the cubicles to be cleared of all materials in and around them, but this simply being replaced by fly-tippers the moment that volunteers had done it.

Whatever, as part of the improvements to Road Three, PPAA enlisted the help of the Indefatigable Mike, who has cleared the really quite shocking amount of soil stemming from weed clumps, tipped around the cubicles and the old club house there. Volunteers had earlier removed a large amount of junk, and the way is now clear for workers to access the structures for renovation. A PPAA Committee member also suggested that the old club house could be roofed as a wet weather shelter, but this has not been discussed further.

So let’s all respect the good and hard work done so far, and look forward, in due course, to these buildings coming back into beneficial service for all on PPA site.

PPA Website Team

Yes folks, that’s what it has cost PPAA to have the great heap of fly-tipping removed. That’s almost the entirety of PPAA’s annual Council grant. The contractors took twenty loads, and they say that around sixty tons were removed.

So the minority who fly-tipped have had this sum spent on them, rather than its having been used for the benefit of the many times more responsible plot holders who didn’t. Still, life’s often like that, but let’s hope that general vigilance for this antisocial lawlessness is improved by people’s considering these facts and figures.

Those who fly-tip define themselves as lazy – among other things – and so it follows that this affects what they fly-tip too. The material was largely the product of the type of weeding that goes with poor husbandry, that is, large root clumps, consisting mainly of earth, where the gardener couldn’t be bothered to shake off the soil. The soil won’t rot, and so a heap of it quickly builds. Accordingly, the source plot levels become ever lower season-by-season, and it’s a great pity that the material removed couldn’t have been used to restock the topsoil of such plots and to bring them up to a proper height again, but most of them now have new holders who are working them. The heap also contained a significant amount of general rubbish – old carpet, pallets, plastic, etc., and this had to be sorted and disposed of separately.

Whatever, it’s an unalloyed good and happy thing, to see the transformation of the part of site that used to be the heap, and its surroundings, and especially to see the plot’s tenants – for the heap was always part of a plot – get to work straight away on cultivating it. We wish them many years of happy and undisturbed gardening there!

Our thanks go to Wendy Gunter, PPAA Treasurer, for organising these works.

PPA Website Team.

Present:  Richard Masterman (Chair), Sue Jones, Wendy Gunter (Treasurer), Martin Pasek, Robert Loxton, Mike Powell

Apologies:  Lewis Evans, Gordon Goldsmith

Previous Minutes:

Meeting date 17^th October 2023: Previously approved. 

Actions from previous meeting

• No reply received from the Council regarding email 18 October and Road 3 safety hazard.
• Dave King thanked the Committee for acknowledging Cardiff Rivers effort in recovering the trolley from the Taff.
• No reply received from Richard/Mike’s enquiry to other sites regarding Risk Assessments.
• Mike had reported the suspect Ash tree near the composting toilet to the Council who had acknowledged receipt of the report.

Other items to be addressed as the agenda.

Chair Report 

• Items to be addressed as the agenda.

Site Representative 

• Council.

The next Council meeting with site representatives to be 15^th November. Richard to attend.

• PPAA

As agenda

Treasurer’s report

Wendy reviewed a number of planned expenditure items which are covered below.

Site Security

• Richard is awaiting a Risk Assessment from the contractor regarding extra security measures for the bottom [southeast] gate.
• A wildlife camera trap has been obtained and will be set up shortly.

Waste heap and shed debris removal

• The shed debris next to Plot 2 has been removed.
• The contractor to remove the large waste heap has been engaged and work should progress this week.

Road 3 culvert

• A concerted effort has been made by Committee members and volunteers to clear the silt. Slip hazard warning signs have been installed.

Hedgehog boxes

• Sue to contact a plot holder who has expressed an interest in assisting with assembling and locating the boxes. 
• Martin suggested creating hedgehog under passes on the boundary fencing to assist with the wide range of hedgehog foraging. 

Plot Inspections

• No response has been received from the Council regarding the plot termination referrals.

Plot Vacancies, letting and structure applications.

Sue reported the following movement since the last meeting:

• All new tenancies in the 6-week probation period have now successfully been confirmed.
• 2 vacant plots waiting viewings.
• 1 application for a structure.

 Manure

• Now delivered but future deliveries are not assured.

Poly tunnel allocations 2024

• 6 grow beds will become available in February 2024 and the process of application and draw will begin in December.

Water trough water 

• Mains water has been isolated for the winter. Plot holders in the vicinity of a trough are encouraged to carry out the simple task of cleaning out any settled dirt. To ensure the clean-up takes place volunteers are requested to contact the Committee via Gmail so a combined effort can be organised.

Shop

• Seed potatoes and onion sets will soon be ordered for delivery in the New Year. A notice will be posted on the website giving details and inviting expressions of interest from plot holders.

Any Other Business

• All plot holders should contact the Committee only via the PPAA Gmail.
• Sue requested all Committee member email correspondence with Council departments be limited to the PPAA Gmail account so that accurate records can be kept. If desired, personal emails should only be used for preliminary discussions with contractors or suppliers. 

Date of next meeting

19:00 Tuesday 5^th December 2023 at Butcher’s Arms Canton.

Present:  Richard Masterman (Chair), Sue Jones, Wendy Gunter (Treasurer), Martin Pasek, Robert Loxton, Lewis Evans, Gordon Goldsmith, Mike Powell

Apologies: Dan Hostler

Previous Minutes:

Meeting date 5^th September 2023: Previously approved. 

Actions from previous meeting

Items to be addressed as the agenda.

Chair Report

Richard welcomed Mike to the Committee

Site Representative 

• Council.

The Council have given a response to the overflowing culvert issue on Road 3. The PPAA Committee, who do not accept aspects of this response, have replied to the Council accordingly. 

In the meanwhile the PPAA Committee have independently and WITHOUT PREJUDICE committed to warning signage, and to clearance of the silt – which is underway .  

• PPAA

As agenda

Treasurer’s report

• Wendy advised that Dave King had confirmed he would continue to act as account auditor for which the Committee are very grateful. 
• A token of gratitude would be made to Cardiff Rivers Group for this and for their assistance in recovering the trolley and the continuing collection and removal of metallic waste.

Site Security

• Richard has obtained a quote from a metal fabricator to improve the security of the bottom gate by making it more difficult to climb over. Intruders have been seen on several occasions to climb over the gate and have been aggressive to plot holders. The Committee approved the expenditure. Richard to obtain a risk assessment from the contractor and action.
• The cost of installing full cctv was proving excessive and it was agreed that wildlife cameras would be obtained and discreetly positioned at suitable locations. 

Autumn hedge trim

• This will be carried out when most leaves have fallen.

Waste heap and shed debris removal

• It is anticipated that this will be carried out in the next few weeks depending on contractor work schedule and a period of dry weather; work to take up to 3 days to complete.
• Wendy volunteered to pursue the removal of shed debris next to Plot 2.

Hedgehog boxes

• 5 have been procured and will be installed.

Plot Inspections

• 7 plots had been identified as long-term overgrown with no sign of activity and had been referred to the Council for terminating the rental agreement. 
• Sue confirmed that all new prospective new plot holders were apprised of the demands of maintaining a plot and Council procedures for neglect. A 6-week probation period is in operation for new plot holders.

Plot Vacancies, letting and structure applications.

Sue reported the following movement since the last meeting:

5 new tenants in the 6-week probation period

1 vacant plot waiting viewings.

1 vacant plot in bad condition to be cleared before letting.

1 plot being cleared and nearly ready for letting.

1 application for a structure.

Manure

A Committee member had recently met with a Council representative who had agreed to investigate manure delivery.

Post meeting note: manure has now been delivered.

Poly tunnel allocations 2024

6 grow beds will become available in February 2024 and the process of application and draw will begin in December.

Water trough water 

Mains water will be isolated for the winter at the end of October.

Any Other Business

• Mike queried the requirement of a site specific Risk Assessment. Richard to enquire if other allotment sites have adopted any procedures.
• Mike noted that a large ash tree near the composting toilet appears to have die back and will advise the Council.

Date of next meeting

19:00 Tuesday 7^th November 2023 at Butcher’s Arms Canton.

Now’s that time of year on site when many of us choose to tidy up our plots from the summer growing season, and to start preparing them for the spring. It also makes it an ideal time for new plot holders to start on a plot, as they now have the time to prepare for the next season’s activities.

With that in mind, it’s also a good time for anyone thinking of giving up their plot – or wanting to explore the relevant options – to do so.

Around the site there’re quite a few plots which’ve seen minimal, or even no, cultivation during this last year. There can be many reasons for this, but there’re options which might help to see some of them being worked productively again.

If a plot’s too big, then the holder could swap it for a smaller one, or the plot could be split.

Maybe there’s someone who would like to share their plot – after all, the Council have people on the waiting list who’ve specified this very thing as a choice.

Or maybe – as’ll be the case for us all in due course – the time’s come for the holder to give up their tenancy.

Anyone wanting to discuss options is cordially invited to contact PPAA Committee, and the range of possible next steps can then be identified and considered.

It’s important for us all to remember this though. A plot holder who releases their tenancy voluntarily isn’t prevented from putting their name back on a Cardiff allotment waiting list. However, that’s not the case if the Council end the tenancy compulsorily.

It’s dispiriting to see new gardeners give up because they struggle to keep their plots sufficiently weed-free to be productive, indeed, acceptable, under the terms of tenancy.

There’s a recurrent pattern, where the new plot holder invests a lot of effort, perhaps even enlists help, to weed the plot, but is then daunted to see that a mere month or so later the myriad seeds have germinated and then rapidly grown, so that the plot looks little different from when they first took it.

The problem often seems to be a lack of knowledge, as to the proper use of two simple, basic tools – the hoe and the rake, and of the effects of time on the growth of weeds.

So, to start at the beginning, once the heavy work of first clearing has been done, it’s essential to prevent weeds from re-establishing themselves, but this needn’t be difficult, and this is where hoe and rake come into the picture. If the gardener can attend at least once every ten days or so during the growing season, then the small weeds and seedlings can easily be destroyed, by using a pull hoe to cut them and their roots away from the underlying soil, working methodically in strips, to avoid trampling the weeds back in, or re-covering them with successive work. This is by far best done in dry weather so that the weeds quickly shrivel and die. After the hoe, a rake can be used to gather up the weeds for the compost heap. It’s best not to leave them as, a shower of rain can water them back in, and some will recover. However, it’s crucial not to allow the weeds time to put down deep roots, and so regular attendance – at least once every ten days – is essential.

That said, however, using a hoe and rake isn’t hard work. If done regularly, then unlike digging it doesn’t need much strength or energy, doesn’t involve bending like weeding with a trowel, and it’s very quick.

If the gardener hasn’t much time, then a low-maintenance plot should be designed so that it may easily be managed by hoe-and-rake. Too many structures – raised beds, cages etc. can hinder the use of these wonderful, simple tools.

A Word About Bay Trees

We’re used to seeing these as attractive small shrubs in tubs, as topiary features, outside restaurants and other public places, and it might be tempting to include one in an allotment herb garden. However, the ones that we see out-and-about are only small because they’re in containers and regularly trimmed. The fact is, that bay is a fast-growing evergreen, a laurel. Planted in free soil it quickly becomes a large, very dense tree. Furthermore, the Council have confirmed, that bay trees are simply broadleaf trees, and are therefore prohibited under Clause Seven in the Schedule forming part of our Tenancy Agreements.

Part of the volunteers’ work is clearing plots ready for new tenants, and an increasingly large part of their time and energy is being taken in dealing with neglected bay trees, which shouldn’t have been planted in the first place.

If anyone wants to grow one of these, then please keep it in a container, one from which it can’t root into the soil, and prune it regularly. After all, how many bay leaves would even the most enthusiastic cook need in a year – a couple of handfuls?

There’s at least one bay in the hedge by the spine road in any case, so if anyone wants a few leaves for a stew then they’re very welcome to help themselves.

The recent weather has been perfect for the rapid growth of weeds, and it’s a fact of the terms of tenancy, that the responsibility for keeping these paths weed-free and usable rests jointly with the holders of the adjoining plots, but not with either PPAA Committee or with the Council – unlike the position with the trackways.

It might assist some to remember then, that it’s also a fact that PPA – like the rest of Cardiff allotment sites – isn’t an organic site. Plot holders are therefore entitled to use chemical weed suppressant if convenient or expedient in the maintenance of these paths. So PPAA Committee understand – on that basis – that no one should hinder or harass any plot holder so doing. If the occupant of an adjoining plot wished to ensure that no splashes whatsoever went onto their plot, then the option is always fully open to them to maintain the path in a weed-free condition themselves.

Where the paths are grass, tenants are encouraged to share the burden of their cutting co-operatively. Where, however, someone refuses to do that, there is no rule which says that the grass must be retained.

Everyone is reminded, that even if they are fortunate enough not to need to use these paths, their neighbours may very well need them for access to their plots and to water troughs, and so it’s very important that they not be blocked by encroaching compost heaps, or by junk etc. either.