Leckwith Droves Allotments

You wouldn’t think when you pass by the industrial metal entrance to leckwith droves that a few hundred yards away is a community of green fingered gardners.
This is the mad max of allotments, hobbled together corregated fortresses hold secret gardens and edible paradises, guarded by gruff old men with a soft hearts. There was a spate of arson attacks a few years ago and so the high walls are understandable. After the love and time you put into growing veg, to see it all burnt through vandalism must be devistating.
As part of the new breed of allotmenteers who got a plot well before retirement, it is interesting to meet the original Leckwith droves crew. Those that have been gardening here for twenty, thirty years or more, when the droves were double the size they are today and developers, supermarkets and carparks were far away.
I don’t know how many different nationalities tend their crops at Leckwith droves, but I’ve met at least seven. One of the reasons for this is that twenty, thirty years ago you couldn’t pop to your local grocers for some peppers or a mangos, it was spuds and sprouts and none of the ‘exotic’ stuff we take for granted today. The docks brought all kinds of nationalities to Cardiff and they wanted to cook with the ingredients they knew and loved and since they couldn’t get them, they grew them.
This year my leeks are racing, runners running, sweetcorn maturing and peas long gone.
The waiting list is about a year and a half, but if you’re serious about gardening and growing your own, put your name down now and the time will fly by.