VILLAGERS will start the new year growing their own vegetables after bringing a wartime allotment site back to life.

Land off Cuddesdon Road, in Horspath, was used for allotments during the Second World War under the Government’s Dig For Victory campaign.

However they fell into disuse at the end of the conflict.

Now, more than five decades later, villagers have been give consent to use the land to grow food again by its owner, the Anglican Diocese of Oxford.

The newly formed Horspath Allotment Association is looking for villagers who want to take on plots in time for the spring sowing season.

Parish councillor Heather Palmer got the ball rolling in September 2007, when she began investigating whether it was possible to reclaim the disused land for the village.

Mrs Palmer, of Gidley Way, who is also the webmaster for the village website, said: “It took some time, because the land had become disused as allotments and was being farmed by a farmer who owned the adjacent field.

“It just looked like a large fallow area, which hadn’t been cleared for some time, because the farmer had been ill.

“I don’t know why people stopped using the land for allotments.

“Maybe after the war people needed to go out to work, rather than being at home digging allotments.

“Eventually, the diocese gave us permission to reclaim the land.”

The 1.4 acre plot was ploughed and sprayed with herbicide, with help from Brian Selwood, who has an allotment elsewhere in the village. The area has been divided into 26 plots, each 20 metres by eight metres.

Villagers will rent their plots from the church diocese, at a cost of about £20.

The association was formed last September and members elected a chairman, treasurer and secretary.

Chairman Peter Ewart, of Church Road, said reclaiming the land was important for the history of the village, and some people were turning their backs on shop-bought fruit and vegetables.

He said: “There are people like myself who get very depressed going to supermarkets and buying imported produce that we can grow in this country.

“There’s also the pleasure of growing things of course.

“We have got divorced from the land in my generation and even more so in the generation after me.

“I think growing things yourself is the way forward.”

Roger Harwood, the director of glebe and buildings for Oxford Diocese, said: “We were approached by people in Horspath who wanted to establish more allotments and we had glebe land available.

“It’s a win-win situation, as it’s a good use of land for the people taking it on.”

Horspath residents who are interested in taking on one of the allotments should call Heather Palmer on 01865 873186.

They can also send an email to webmaster@horspath.org.uk