The website for grandparents

How to be an abundant grandparent

Rotting

Then, somehow or other, our lives changed. Everything became so cheap and convenient to buy, and life just got too busy to bother with tilling the land. Now many of us have gardens or live near gardens or parks where the apples and plums rot on the bough while we queue at the supermarket to buy our preserves.

It’s easy to lose touch with the land, standing in that queue. To forget that winter is a time for the soil to cool, the weeds to die and bulbs to grow in the dark. That spring is planting time, summer and autumn are all about harvest and preserve-making – and so the cycle goes on. Comfortingly.

Old ways

Nowadays, in credit-crunch, climate-challenged, time-torn UK, there’s a small but significant turn-back to the ‘old ways’. Some of these ventures are very personal and not new at all – allotment gardening, for example. Others are community based, like the abundance projects in Sheffield, Manchester and West Ealing in London.

Are grandparents leading the way? We're not sure. Maybe you can tell us. Certainly there are plenty of hale and hearty 20- and 30-year-olds working on such projects. Perhaps grandparents could begin to take the lead and make more of these projects happen? Mostly, it's organisational energy that's lacking. And that's an arena in which the 'experienced' grandparent generation shines.

Down and dirty

What’s certain is that young children just love digging and delving in the garden, on allotments, doing communal fruit gathering, planting with a gang of others – and just knocking about outdoors. The more opportunities you can give them to see you – one of the most important adults in their lives – enjoying the cycle of producing your own food, the more likely they are to want to take part when they get older.

Below are some ideas that have inspired us.

Please let us know what's inspired you. In particular, tell us about any local initiatives that are looking for volunteer grandparent 'energy', or add your experiences of allotment-growing or working with children to produce food (in school or at home). You can do this by adding a comment at the end of this article.

Local allotments

These are becoming increasingly popular, but even if there’s a waiting list, it’s worth putting your name down for a nice slice of growing ground not far from your home. Allotments are cheap, too – just a few pounds a year for a plot that would cost a fortune to build on – and can be cheaper still if you’re claiming your pension.

You can even have a shed so you can spend some quality time there and become part of the allotment community. When the grandchildren come round, get them started on the digging (so good for them!) while you crack open the Thermos and ‘network’ with the locals.

To find an allotment, just ask your local council. You can get its contact details, including website address, from Directgov. When you arrive at your council's website, type 'allotments’ in the search box and you’ll soon be plugged into what’s available locally.

For instance, we checked out the Wakefield Council website and came up with a load of information on allotments available plus news of a 12-month waiting list (gives you time to find your wellies). The price tag of £20-£40 a year, depending on size, plus a £10 water charge, is cut by half for senior citizens. Even if you change your mind when your name comes to the top of the list, it’s worth signing up.

Landshare

TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has, with his Landshare initiative, matched more than 1,000 landowners with growers throughout the UK. You can become part of that by offering land (plots of any size) on the Landshare website, asking there for a plot that you can cultivate, or just offering to help.

Abundance in action

• Abundance in Sheffield
• Abundance in Manchester 
• Abundance in West Ealing, London

These are the three 'Abundance' projects we know of. Operating in densely populated urban areas, they are all about harvesting local fruit and redistributing it – a highly communal activity. 

A useful book

The Abundance Handbook
Available from Abundance Sheffield. They explain how you can download the 60 pages and either view them online or print them out using only 15 sheets of paper! The booklet is free to download or £6.50 + £1 p&p if you want a print version sent to you.