Friends of North Bovey Allotments

A small allotment does not rebuild itself out of nothing. Much of what we know has been given to us by people who came, looked at the ground, and told us plainly what they thought. These are some of them, with our thanks.

The Devon Community Composting Network documents over two decades of pioneering community composting across Devon. Founded and led by Nicky Scott, the network has supported villages, schools and local authorities to divert green and food waste from landfill, strengthen soils and reduce carbon emissions.

From early collaborations with Proper Job in Chagford to partnerships with the Compost Doctors and Growing Devon Schools, it has championed practical, local solutions rooted in community action. Although formal funding has ended, the site remains a valuable archive of guidance, case studies and inspiration for new projects.

Nicky has visited our allotment to offer generous, practical advice, and we are grateful to be connected to this wider composting community.

dccn.org.uk

Peter Hunt of Bees in Devon runs Blackaller Apiary on the edge of Dartmoor, where he offers practical beekeeping advice, training, and pollination services for gardens and orchards. Having kept bees since an early age, he supports both new and experienced apiarists with hive placement, seasonal management, swarm capture, and the care needed to keep colonies healthy through changing conditions.

His work reflects a deep respect for the fragile ecology of Dartmoor and the essential role bees play in supporting wider wildlife and biodiversity. Alongside consultancy and training, Peter produces distinctive Dartmoor and Cornish wildflower honeys, shaped by nectar from plants such as celandine, dandelion, and orchard blossoms. He also keeps Jacob sheep, whose wool and fleeces are used for blankets, knitting wool, and sheepskin rugs.

Peter has visited our allotment to share generous advice, and we are grateful to be connected to this local network of knowledge and stewardship.

beesindevon.co.uk

Knowledge travels

The Vision for Dartmoor describes habitats and communities that are connected rather than isolated. That holds at our scale too. Compost that works, bees that come through the winter, soil that holds water in a dry summer. None of it is knowledge we generated here, and none of it should stop here either.

If you have visited, advised, lent a machine or given a day to the plots and you are not on this page, that is our oversight rather than an omission. Tell us and we will put it right.

Others growing nearby

We are not the only ones at this. If North Bovey does not suit you, or you want to see how somebody else has gone about it, these are worth your time.

Moretonhampstead Community Allotment, run by Wellmoor, part of the Moretonhampstead Development Trust. It began with local doctors wanting somewhere to send people, and it runs as weekly sessions rather than as let plots. Closer to a working model of what a growing space can do for a town than anything else on the moor. wellmoor.org.uk

Chagford Community Gardens. No dig, no chemicals, a great deal of thought about what grows well beside what. They keep starter beds for people waiting on a full allotment, which is much the same idea as our raised beds.

Proper Job, Chagford. Reuse, recycling and composting, and the reason a good deal of practical composting knowledge exists in this part of Devon at all. proper-job.org

Different places, different problems. Ours is a small field and not much time. Theirs are their own. But the knowledge moves between us, which is the point.

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