The 13th - 19th of August was National Allotments week where allotment sites opened up their gates to show off their great growing skills and to encourage others to join us in growing their own food. Exmouth District Allotment Association held an Open Afternoon which included a vintage tea, a raffle with some fantastic prizes and a tour around the plots.

I think the highlight for me was the guided tour. No one really has the time when you are up at your plot to take a walk around the site so this was a real treat. What amazed me was the range of different ways that we grow things. There were different plot layouts, ways of supporting and protecting fruit and vegetables, ways to number the plot and signs. But there was also a wonderful array of flowers on many of the plots. There were dahlias with hats, dahlias without hats, zinnias, sunflowers and buddleja.

dahlia with umbrella

Everyone was taken with the wide range of produce on display including the more unusual vegetables. There was everything from aubergines to summer squash including cucamelons and a very unusual summer squash.

Just look at those grapes!  There were also eggs and honey from the chickens, ducks and bees kept on some of the sites.

chickens

And of course there was tea and cake. In fact, there was a fantastic array of cakes and scones available some of which had been made with the produce from the plots.

cake

And of course visitors to eat it.

Thank you to everyone who organised this and helped on the day. It was a lovely way to see the allotments.

If you visited the plots, what did you enjoy most?