Ellesmere needs allotment land

Green-fingered people in a Shropshire town have issued a rallying call to landowners to help them find land for allotments in a move which would end a 20-year wait for a suitable site.

Ellesmere Allotment Society has 26 members, but currently no allotments for people to use. Because Ellesmere Town Council has no suitable sites which it can offer, the group is now on the lookout for offers from local landowners who might be able to help.

The last council run allotments in the town were lost in the late 1980s when land at the former creamery was sold off, paving the way for the ongoing wharf redevelopment.

Now members of the group, which formed in August, want to find a site within one mile of the town centre which could be transformed into a community allotment site.

Jane Farncombe, chairman of the society, said: "Ellesmere Town Council has no land suitable, so the society is now approaching local landowners to see if anyone has land available for the society to rent.

"The requirements would be an area of reasonably flat land large enough to create 20 to 30 allotments, access from a road, and with space for a small car park and a formal agreement with the owner that would provide security of tenure for a minimum of 10 years. Once suitable land is found and ag-reed, the allotment society would seek funding to enable them to clear the site, install a water supply, and erect security fencing."

She added she hoped the search for land would be successful in order that more people in Ellesmere might have the opportunity to grow their own fruit and vegetables, and to enjoy the special taste of "just-harvested" food.

Anybody who can help is asked to call Mrs Farncombe on (01691) 622497.