Longford allotments: A solution to reducing the cost of living

“See this cabbage here?” says Irene Doran, as she points to a huge sprawling vegetable. “It’s an organic Heritage Cabbage, grown with heritage seeds from SeedSavers,” she explains.

Next, Irene singles out another cabbage, this one much smaller in size.

“Here’s one that was grown with the seeds from a supermarket. Look at the difference!”

Community herbalist Irene is the Vice Secretary of the Longford Town Community Allotments Committee.

She is also a plot holder and a dedicated member of IrishSeedSavers, a non-profit organisation based in County Clare which actively preserves Ireland's heritage seeds and traditional crops through the practice of ‘conservation through use.’

Irene’s plot, which she tends to along with her husband, chef Martin O’Connor, is one of 44 allotments available for lease by individuals and community groups for a small annual fee.

Situated on a two-acre site off the old Dublin Road at Aghadegnan in Longford Town, the idea is to offer people a place where they can grow fresh food, flowers, learn practical skills and meet others from across the community. Future plans for the new allotment site also include a community garden.

On the day of the official launch of The Longford Town Community Allotments, Irene’s husband Martin was on chef duty, serving up the most incredibly flavoursome hearty food to those who gathered to celebrate the occasion.

A lot of the food had been grown in the allotment which highlighted the circular nature of the project as the vegetables and salads were later returned to the plot in another form. The leftover food was composted to help nourish the soil, supporting the growth of more produce in the future.

After a most filling meal, Irene walks around the plot, showing the various vegetables and plants, and explaining how the reasons to grow, and the benefits of doing so, can far outweigh the reasons to buy.

“In a shop, that would be considered a nice size cabbage,” she says, pointing to the smaller vegetable that was grown from supermarket seeds and is now sitting in the shadow of it’s much larger heritage-seed-grown cousin nearby.

"It’s only when you see the size it should be, you realise the difference,” she says. “There was a time when a cabbage would feed a family for a week, now one head won’t even feed a family. There’s no density, it’s full of water, but when you grow your own (with the right seeds), you get those nutrients and you end up needing less because they fill you.”

Even the celery and scallions, or spring onions/green onions as they’re also known, are substantially bigger than the shop bought variety.

“There’s no need to pull up the whole plant when you want to some green onions. You just pick what you need, when you need it. They grow new each time and you won’t need to replant for about two to three years.”

The same with Kale, the more you pick of it, the more it grows. It’s a lot of work, so you plant what gives you value.”

Walking through the allotments, Committee Vice Chair Gráinne Brady points out the variety of food being grown across the different plots: cucumber, Brussel sprouts, tomatoes, potatoes, corn, courgettes, strawberries, beetroot, chillies, herbs, to name but a few.

“This lady has gown such a mountain of food in her plot this year,” Gráinne says as she approaches one particular plot, highlighting how even a small area of land could make a meaningful difference to a family’s food bill at a time when the cost of living continues to pinch.

Aside from the financial benefits of growing your own, committee chairperson Andy says there is a big social aspect.

"What this is mostly about is bringing community together, to be part of something, to grow a bit and to share company and have a bit of craic as well.”

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