After more than two years in the works an allotment scheme is set to finally open up.
TV presenter Pippa Greenwood and Hampshire North East MP James Arbuthnot will officially open the Hook allotments at Hook Cross, Reading Road on Sunday, March 13.
And last week Hook Parish Council gave Hook Allotment Association (HAA) a £2,000 cash grant.
Association chairman Pete Comley said: “After two years of hard slog we have finally got to our opening weekend which is fantastic.
“I have been staggered how many people wanted allotments. It has got to the stage where we have got down to zero on the allotment waiting list in Hook and Rotherwick.”
In November last year the association secured a 5.5-acre plot of land for up to 120 allotment plots.
And since opening to parish residents, more than 140 plots ranging in size from 25m by 10m to 3m by 10m, have been snapped up.
To get the scheme off the ground, the HAA has relied on a number of cash grants.
In December 2010 Hook Parish Council gave the association £10,000 to install rabbit and deer proof fencing around the land.
And in January this year, the Big Lottery Fund announced a further £10,000 grant to fund a recycled plastic track to let gardeners drive and park on the land.
But Mr Comley said that the allotments’ success depended on volunteer support.
At the end of February up to 40 residents turned out in the pouring rain to help lay tracks through the allotments.
Mr Comley said: “We had lots of volunteers turn out to help with the track - it really is an amazing example of community support.
“I was quite taken aback by the help and support we have received from the community. Hopefully it will do something for Hook as a village.”
At the opening Pippa Greenwood will plant the first apple tree in a planned community orchard.
The tree, an old Hampshire variety called Hamledon Deux Ans, was chosen by the HAA because it was first bred in the county in 1750.
The launch will take place at 11am. For more information on getting an allotment, visit www.hookallotments.com
