Meet Anjee, an avid allotment lover and family gardener. Her interest in growing edibles started when she was a small child. As a teenager, she and her dad created a veggie patch. But the real passion began when she applied for an allotment. It took five years of being on a waiting list, but eventually, she became the proud custodian of Plot26a! The timing wasn’t great, as with four children under six years old (the youngest only two weeks old at the time!) and a non-gardening husband who worked away, sorting the allotment seemed a hell of a task, but nothing deters her!
Over the years, Anjee’s allotment has developed from a mud pie factory to a space where the family grows food and makes many memories together. During lockdown, they became more self-reliant by creating another small veg patch at home and keeping chickens.
Through the years, the experience of growing so many different plants has brought new methods and species to try. Anjee’s preference leans toward perennial edibles, and while her collection expands year by year, Taunton Deane remains her absolute favourite. Anjee discovered the benefits of no-dig gardening and the joy of making the veggie garden an inviting and attractive place for wildlife by creating new habitats and pollinator-friendly flowers. The space evolves yearly, and the whole family constantly learns from it. You can track their growth journey on Instagram, and Anjee’s enthusiasm for family allotment gardening is now accessible through her YouTube channel, ‘From Anjee’s Garden.’
Sharing the love of growing and the wonder of nature with the next generation is hugely important to her, as she benefited so much from it in her own life. She runs a forest school and gardening sessions with the home education community where everyone engages in fun outdoor learning, foraging, growing food and visiting inspirational places. She hosts many gardening talks and workshops and sells plants, seeds, and skincare products crafted from flowers and medicinal plants harvested from her garden.