"Dave Liquorice" wrote in message
ll.net...
On Sat, 18 Apr 2009 17:47:16 GMT, brooklyn1 wrote:

What size are these allotment plots, are they all the same size?

10 rods is a standard plot but 5 rod plots can be available.

A rod (or pole or perch) is 5.5 yards. Square it for area so a Rod (area)
is 30.25 sq yards. 10 rods (area) is 300 sq yards, 250 sq metres. You get
16 plots to the acre.

How much is the rent?

Varies. A few tens of pounds per year is normal.

Can one actually grow enough useable crops on these plots to make it
worthwhile to cover the rent and ones time, labors, and incidental
expenses...

You can probably grow more than enough to cover the rent and costs. But
highly unlikely to cover your time even at minimum wage rates of £5.73/hr.

Does the government supply water?

Normally cost is included in the rent.

I suppose the government is the landlord?,

Not central government. The local district council is usually the
landlord.

for what purpose is the rent monies used?

The Landlord has some costs, water supply for instance and upkeep of
communal features such as boundary fencing etc. The income from the rent
is not a great deal of money.

All very interesting. So a 10 rod plot is about the same as my 2,500 sq ft
vegetable garden, that's more than enough to supply a typical family. And a
nice feature is that you have lots of folks to swap crops with so you can
all increase your variety. Thank you for the info.