Design of an Allotment Association

Client interview

Observations from 2018.

• feelings about current arrangements
  • overall layout
    • two main clusters of gardens: one at the top, one at the bottom
  • access
    • primary access is on foot or by bicycle, using one of three access gates
    • the main gate allows motorized access
  • structures
    • caravan
    • toilet building
    • pump building
    • gates
    • shipping containers for storage
      • garden supplies for sale (poles, chicken wire, fertilizer)
      • garden equipment for maintenance crew
      • machines for maintenance crew
    • structures for wheelbarrow storage
    • yard for storage of building materials, manure and compost
  • trees & plants
    • hedge around the perimeter
    • hazel near toad pond
    • borders of the main path
  • maintenance
    • weekly cleaning of the caravan
    • daily cleaning of toilet
    • weekly maintenance by maintenance crew
    • irregular maintenance of paths
• needs & wants
  • priorities
    • dictated by necessity
  • wants
    • playground for children?
• values & vision
  • there is no vision
• life style
  • events
    • there used to be more activities; the association suffers from a lack of organizers
  • visitors
    • access for the general public is limited to Saturday's between 10am and 12am
    • access for members is limited from sun up to sun down
  • food growing
    • primary focus of the association is to facilitate annual vegetable and flower growing
    • some members have fruit trees or walnut trees
  • eating
    • the caravan has a coffee machine and a small kitchen area with a refrigerator
    • some members have wood stoves and / or barbecues
  • transport
    • trailer for garden waste (discontinued in 2019)
    • trailer for general / bulky waste
    • small walk-behind-tractor
    • most members come by car, motorbike or bicycle
  • time on site
    • board members on Saturday from 10 to 12 - experimented with a rotational schedule; that did not work
    • maintenance crew on Wednesday from 8:30 to 11:30 (discontinued in 2024)
    • some members are on site almost daily (their numbers are decreasing)
    • busiest days are Saturday and Sunday
  • income
    • member fees
    • sale of garden supplies like compost, fence, fertilizer
    • services rendered: ploughing and / or cultivating a garden
  • occupation
    • the grounds can only be used for growing, no commercial activities allowed
• limiting factors
  • physical
    • most regular members have passed retirement age and are starting to come down with persistent medical conditions
  • emotional
    • members can be easily triggered by pressing on their buttons
  • mental
    • communication styles can be rough and hurtful
  • resources
    • lack of budget
    • lack of time by members
    • expensive to use outside contractors
• personal resources
  • vision
    • N/A
  • network
    • N/A
  • skills
    • N/A
• financial budget
  • in 2018:
    • inflow: €10000 / year
    • outflow: €12000 / year
    • deficit: €2000 / year
• site related
  • neighbors
    • golf course (since 2022 private property)
    • A2 / N2 highway (Rijkswaterstaat)
    • trailer park
    • yacht club
    • toad pool
    • Brabant Water
  • duration of stay
    • access is only allowed from sun up to sun down (i.e. during daylight hours)
  • rights of way
    • none
  • legal
    • grounds are rented (pacht) from the city
  • who owns what
    • city owns ground
    • association own the (infra)structures
  • issues like theft, vandalism
    • regular reports of garbage dumping
    • irregular reports of stealing
    • irregular reports of vandalism
• time scale
  • N/A
• any other questions?
  • N/A

Budget and target audience

Current prices (2018)

• membership 20€
• key deposit 50€
• land rental 0,50€/m²

Current yearly deficit in budget: ca. €2000.

Encourage more people to become members / active

• better contact information on the website / facebook page
• create buzz
• offer clinics on pruning / grafting / compost / waste reduction / working with nature / permaculture
• [option] family membership (cheaper than full membership)
• [option] more gatherings
• [option] offer more ways for people to engage

Encourage people to pass by caravan / engage with other members

• close gates 2 and 3
• enlarge caravan / rework layout

Measured interest via website

Data used: all inquiries via the website in 2017 and 2018.

• January through April (months 1-4) about half a query per month
• May through August (months 5-8) about one query per month
• September through December (months 9-12) about 1.5 query per month
• over a whole year this comes to about 12 requests for membership

Other observations from the messages: some people specifically ask for small gardens or ask to help another gardener with their garden.

It seems at least some people lack confidence and would like a bit of hand-holding. Alternatively we could match these people with gardens that lack a bit of maintenance.

Gardening season

Info from a sowing calendar.

The growing season in the Northern Hemisphere in a maritime climate starts in March / April.

9 ways of observing

• I wonder...
  • how many members need the allotment to supply their basic needs
  • how many members sell their produce on the side
  • what distribution of ages are the members of the allotment association
  • how to get more members involved
  • can we plant willows in the wet area near the motorway
• Observe energy
  • more energy is put in maintaining the area close to the main gate and the caravan
  • board members combine functions because too few people volunteer
  • too few new members, currently 14 plots unoccupied
  • many members have two or more gardens
• Observe flow
  • layout near main entrance allows more fine grained flow
  • flow of garbage from gardens and illegal dumpings
  • flow of green cuttings from gardens
  • incoming and outgoing members
    • leaving to or coming from different allotment associations
    • starting with gardening
    • stopping with gardening due to age, illness
    • NOTE maybe exchange members with other allotment associations
• Observe communities
  • board
  • maintenance crew
  • Dutch members (mostly elderly men)
  • Turkish members (mostly young and middle aged men)
  • expats (mostly young men)
  • gardens in upper part of complex
  • gardens in lower part of complex
  • toad pond
  • trailer park
  • golf course
  • yacht club
  • other allotment associations (Bokt, Groen Gennep, ...)
  • district Lievendaal
  • district associations
    • Buurtvereniging Welschap
    • Drents Dorp (FB, wijkblad)
    • Wijk 't Ven
  • district Meerhoven
  • Eindhoven city
  • water authority de Dommel
  • province Noord Brabant
  • rijkswaterstaat
  • national government the Netherlands
• Observe patterns
  • tendency to try to solve social problems with technical solutions
  • irregular reports of vegetables gone missing
  • the allotment association is miniature reflection of Dutch society
  • fibonacci sequences
    • gates: 1 main gate, 3 small access gates
    • plots: all approx. 144m², some members have 2, 3 or 4 plots
• Observe edge
  • there is seems to be an (w)edge between board and members
  • each plot is fenced in to keep wild life out
  • cultural differences lead to misunderstandings and hurt feelings
  • unskillful communication leads to misunderstandings and hurt feelings
  • on the edge of the terrain of the Water Authority grows hogweed
• Observe limits
  • money: budget shortfall in 2018 was €2000
    • increase contribution and / or waste removal fee
    • attract more members
    • reduce costs further
    • ask members for community for money
  • time for community service
  • quality of services
  • discipline of members in upkeep of their garden
  • ability to prevent theft
  • ability to prevent dumping of trash
  • ability to keep website up to date
  • enforce rules governing placement of sheds on the plots
  • center function is lacking in current setup
• Observe from stillness
  • lack of trust
    • between board and members
    • among members themselves
  • unwillingness to get involved with the association as it is "the task of the board"
  • irritation due to
    • dumping of trash
    • mixing plastic trash with green cuttings
    • vandalism to gardens
    • theft from gardens
    • large amounts of green waste
    • perceived inaction from board
  • feelings of helplessness to be able to change course
• Observe past & future
  • allotment association founded in 1977
  • allotment members fall into a few broad groups:
    • working class, 65+, white, (mostly) males, Dutch
    • working class, 65+, migrants, (mostly) males, (Spain, Turkey)
    • working class, 25+, migrants (Turkey, Syria, Irak)
    • educated, 25+, migrants (India, eastern Europe)
    • educated, 25+, Dutch

Ethics

• Earth care
  • Reduce
    • fossil fuel use
    • use of poisons (prohibited anyway)
    • disturbing the soil
    • water usage from ground water well
    • destroying a garden after a member leaves
  • Reuse
    • concrete tiles, windows and other construction materials
    • leave trees and shrubs for a new tenant
    • relocate trees, shrubs and other perennials to other gardens
    • encourage members to trade plants between themselves
  • Recycle
    • put green cuttings in compost pile
  • Repair
    • soil ecology
    • connection of man to (its) nature
• People care
  • connect people
  • share stories
  • share food
  • create friendships
  • share a love of gardening
• Fair share / Future care
  • educate on low maintenance gardening
  • exchange seeds
  • exchange knowledge

Holmgren principles

• Observe and interact
  • talk to members
  • talk to board
  • look at gardens
  • observe conversations between members
  • observe members and their activities
  • observe messages sent via website
• Catch and store energy
  • recruit new members
  • mentor new members
  • offer smaller gardens for people to try out
  • get members to help with the association and its upkeep
  • match members who struggle with members that can help out a bit
• Obtain a yield
  • harvest gardens of inactive members
  • give tours around different gardens
• Apply self regulation and accept feedback
  • start with quick wins
  • expect resistance to a different way of working
• Use and value renewable resources and services
  • have mentors for new members to ask questions to
  • collect green cuttings on one or more compost piles
  • have a day to celebrate soil life, our bees and insects
• Produce no waste
  • organize potluck with food grown in allotments
  • have a community compost pile
  • have a compost toilet
  • when clearing a garden, offer plants to other members for use on their plots
  • introduce in-situ composters
  • check expenses to see where cuts can be made
• Design from patterns to details
  • do less work
    • maintain gardens of inactive members instead of razing them
    • find ways for people to take over a garden
    • share what gardens are available
• Integrate rather than segregate
  • find ways to get members actively involved in the association
• Use small and slow solutions
  • prefer hand tools over fossil fuel powered machines
• Use and value diversity
  • many different nationalities - many different cuisines; people can learn from each other and exchange recipes
  • every garden looks different: have exchanges where people can exchange information and experiences on their plot
• Use edges and value the marginal
  • N/A
• Creatively use and respond to change
  • N/A

Ideas

• clinics
  • also for non-members at extra charge
  • composting
  • pruning (snoeien)
  • grafting (enten)
  • hedgelaying (heg vlechten)
  • permaculture
• BBQ / potluck
  • exchange experiences
  • exchange recipes
• seed and seedling exchange
• open door day
• mentoring
  • new members
  • exchange experiences
  • plant consultation
• activities for kids
• needs / offers board
• common gardening day
• deck out surplus table
• organize activities between associations
• ask members to suggest ways they want to volunteer
• round up sponsors

Flyer

A5 flyer / 1/0 / 80 g/m²

• distribution in Lievendaal district.

Slogan

• Ik tuinier bij Volkstuinvereniging Welschap. Gezellig en ontspannen.
  • Eten uit eigen tuin
  • Gezond en ontspannen leren tuinieren
  • Draag bij aan een betere, groenere wereld
  • Gezellige vereniging, behulpzame leden
  • Super verse, biologische groenten en fruit

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Poster in Lidl / gemeenschapshuis Lievendaal

Conduct interviews with members and publish on website