An amatuer gardener says she saves hundreds of pounds on food after turning an alleyway into a fruit and vegetable garden.
Some of the grub Yazmin Highton, 30, from Manchester, has grown includes potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, peppers, chillies, green beans, and lettuce.
She has also harvested chives, garlic, shallots, courgette, radishes, red cabbage, cucumbers and pumpkins, as well as raspberries and strawberries.
Yazmin said her parents would grow their own food, but she was never interested in starting an allotment until she moved out.
Families will be looking to cut back on their supermarket spend after experts at Kantar warned the price of the annual grocery shop will increase by £180 this year.
Yazmin told LatestDeals.co.uk : “After settling into our home, I realised it would be nice to have a nice garden, with things I could take inside and eat right away.
“Plus, it was a great hobby that I could do from home, but still get outdoors and get some exercise too.
“I live in a terraced house with a tiny paved yard. It’s taken some creativity and inspiration from others locally.”
Yazmin said she started by growing food in small pots, planters, and hanging baskets in her own back garden in 2018.
She then began clearing out the communal alleyway with a couple of neighbours, as some other nearby streets had done similar.
“After clearing dumped rubbish and weeds, we began sourcing pots, soil, seeds, plants, etc and began planting,” she explained.
“Although it’s a shared space, it’s so quiet and lovely even though we are in a busy area.
“Initially, we needed any supplies we could get hold of to grow produce in, plus soil. We used upcycled buckets, containers and cheap or free pots.
“We bought peat-free soil from the shop. Eventually, we were awarded a neighbourhood improvement fund from our local council, which we used to invest in giant wooden raised beds, buying soil and manure by the tonne, and more plug plants and seeds.”
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The neighbours worked together to build raised beds and each take it in turns to maintain the alleyway.
Once the crops are ready, Yazmin can begin preparing meals that are budget friendly.
“I make loads of classics like roast potatoes and carrots,” she said.
“I’ve made fajitas with peppers and shallots, falafel with broad beans, salads, basically anything I’d normally have, but with local and fresh produce. We save hundreds of pounds during each harvest season.”
Yazmin says you don’t need fancy stuff or tons of space to start your own allotment.
She recommends checking for garden stuff, including seedlings, going for free or cheap on Freecycle and Facebook Marketplace.
Shhe added: “I’d also suggest if anyone is considering a similar community project, finding out if there are grants available to help with initial costs and getting a few neighbours involved.”
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