Over zealous allotment committee?

[alldigging]

.

Whats annoying is why hide behind a letter and not tell me in person. They are only there early Sat/Sun when i have other commitments and cannot make it.
.

Because they are only there when you can not be.

You expect them to be there to match your needs, but ignoring the fact that makes the reverse true.

[Plot10]

I'm with Wendy C on this one, the letter is to formally advise you that there's an issue.

Try not to take it personally or get defensive. I have had 2 "not-worked" letters over the past few years. My response each time was to write (e-mail) politely and matter of factually to explain what I had done, what my next steps would be and to request time to bring it up to scratch with an understanding that if that was not satisfactory they would tell me specifically what I needed to do and further time to carry that out.

I would do that and ask for clarification of any policies that you were not aware of e.g. not using carpets if that's a problem and take it from there.

[Lazy Gardener]

No name on the letter, No phone number, Not signed, No address to write to.

Seems the contact details for committee members are in the shed which i didnt know
i had access to.

I put chippings down around my onions because the ground is getting baked by the sun
and something is eating them. I thought it may help.

Is it such a terrible crime to put chippings down? I know they say it takes nitrogen? out of
the soil, But this is on top not in the soil. And before planting the onions i worked in many
bags of manure. Which they said was bad idea for onions. Yet i had the best crop of
onions i have ever grown.

I have proper membrane to go down. But issues are preventing me spending much time there
at present. So keeping the weeds at bay took priority.

[alldigging]

You need to speak to someone and pronto.

They shouldn't be able to tell you off for something like putting bark chippings down. But you need to establish what is wrong with your plot in their eyes.

Sending a letter with no contact details is silly of them.

[RaptorUK]

Is it such a terrible crime to put chippings down?

What does it say in your association rules ? they are the rules you signed up to when you signed the paperwork and paid your rent . . . and any deposits (keys etc.) so those are what you have agreed to be bound by.

If there is no specific mention of chippings, or any limitations of what you can put on/in the soil then you can put them down. You do need to read them though and make sure you are familiar with what they do and don't cover.

[lottie dolly]

If a formal letter is not dated and signed by anyone,how can it count,it should be dated stating how long they give you to do what they asking,also signed to say whom is doing the asking,it could be taken as a prank from someone,hope you soon get it sorted,someone Has to be accountable for any letters.

[Raybon]

This is a horrid, unnerving situation for you. No wonder you are very upset - I would be too!
What matters is the way you deal with it, so there can be no grounds for criticism.
Maybe you could calmly write down the points and questions you would like to make, and make every effort to speak on reasonable terms with the Head Honcho.
Number one is that the letter is from unknown person or persons......you could begin by enlisting his support to find out who wrote it. Good luck.

[WendyC]

An anonymous letter surely can have no importance, other than to upset. You must go back to whoever showed you round or gave you the tenancy to sign and get some proper answers.

[Lazy Gardener]

The people that showed me around in the 1st instance are no longer there or
no longer on the committee.

Usually we are there late when everyone else has gone home. Since we took the plot
a lot of illness in the family has set us back a lot. I know the worst thing to do is rotovate
but we spent a lot of time picking the new weak weeds out. Then the MIL was taken ill and
we regretted the rotovator..

It just happened that others were around when we put the chippings down yet nobody
said a word.

Now the FIL is in hospital and putting the chippings down seemed like a good idea in the short
term so that we dont go back to 6ft of weeds.

[Lazy Gardener]

I have the Council allotment rules. But dont seem to have anything with any special
terms for this site.

When i asked about established trees and structures, I was told its my plot i can do
what i like.

[WendyC]

Sounds like you need to ask the Council about it, if they didn't send the letter, as landlords, then it is of no importance.

[veggiechicken]

Sorry about all your family health problems - family should always come first.
Looking back at your first post, you had 2 plots on different sites - one manageable and the other one that was full of rubbish. I assume its the second one you're having problems with. Are you OK with the other plot - timewise?
Do you think someone knows that you have 2 plots and perhaps resents it?

[Lazy Gardener]

Nope they have no idea that we have 2 plots. We are actually spending less time on the bigger plot because we had had an extra couple of years to keep the weeds at bay and they say nothing of piling the chipping ups to help prevent them.

Also we have crops that take longer to grow and dont require tending as much.

Lots of rhubarb, Strawberries etc from the old plot. Berries all coming up and ripening also.
Potatoes doing really well.

The smaller plot is flat and ideal for stuff like onions and beetroot, Cabbages were rather eaten last time but we did get some.
They were smothered in chippings last year with no comments.

Found the letter we had in March/April. Saying little work had been done over the winter. What can you do on a soggy plot during the winter?

The council have basically handed the running over to the committee. Only one part time person at the council to manage all the sites. Over a hundred i think in the Birmingham area.

[alldigging]

Found the letter we had in March/April. Saying little work had been done over the winter. What can you do on a soggy plot during the winter?

The problem will be that some people will have gone and tidied up over the mild winter, done winter digging, prepared beds, made sure things weren't blowing about etc.

[Samurailord]

On our site we can usually tell if we are going to have a problem with a particular plot come the spring/summer by noting if anything is done over winter.

Some dedicated plotholders are on and working even through the rain and cold whilst others sit at home warming themselves by the fire.

Guess which ones have the plots knee deep in weeds with nothing planted by May?

To be honest, some who stay home over winter do throw themselves back into it with gusto once Spring arrives, but normally those who are still absent a couple of weeks after most folk have started sowing and preparing beds etc. tend to be those who did very little between October and March.

Andy