First year: day one (July, 2008)

I was very pleased to finally get allocated a plot in Oliver Road, in Leyton, in late July 2008. I have always enjoyed growing things but never had the space where I live in London. This photo shows how the allotment plot looked on the day I was allocated it. At the back fence where the shed is located, brambles were growing wildly out of control, threatening to swallow the poor shed, having already done a great job at smothering the raspberry canes. The rest of the allotment had weeds varying in height from four to five feet. I was very pleased to inherit this patch of fertile land to cultivate - certainly fertile soil if such vigorous growth could happen in only a few months of neglect. Some interesting looking plants were noticeable beneath all this the undergrowth such as a densely packed strawberry patch and some small gooseberry bushes.

My first job was damage limitation: to try to rescue these valuable and established plants to allow them at least some sunlight and space to grow, so I removed all the choking bindweed and other growth that was smothering these poor plants. Once this localised rescuing work was done, I could think how to clear the remaining 70% of the plot, without loosing the plot and resorting to napalm or roundup. Although napalm did seem more fun...