Should Bremen turn orphaned allotments into building land to create new living space? This idea found some advocates before Corona. In addition to the SPD, the State Association of Garden Friends also campaigned for this. The umbrella organization of allotment garden associations was hoping for multi-story buildings with residents who want to create a green oasis in the immediate vicinity. The fact that allotment gardens could become more popular again hardly played a role in the debate at the time. But thanks to the pandemic, some orphaned gardens have awakened from their slumber.
According to the environmental department, 487 empty plots of land were reported in the city in 2018. By 2023, that number fell to 335. “Our vacancy exchange is a good tool,” says spokeswoman Ramona Schlee. The opportunity to offer free plots on the department’s website is being actively used. “There are four categories for the condition. This means that interested parties can quickly assess how much work they have to put into the garden,” explains Schlee.
Vacancy is still a problem in Gröpelingen and Walle.
Viola Falkenberg, State Association of Garden Friends
Viola Falkenberg, chairwoman of the State Association of Garden Friends, also sees a positive trend overall. “In the west of Bremen, i.e. in Gröpelingen and Walle, vacancies are still a problem,” she emphasizes. This is due to the unequal relationship between residents and allotments. “The city center and the east are more densely populated, and many allotment garden associations there have waiting lists,” says Falkenberg. Most interested parties wanted a garden close to home and were not prepared to drive to the other end of the city.
The regional association no longer represents the view that vacant areas should be transformed into new development areas. “Nobody discusses this anymore,” says Falkenberg. Department spokeswoman Schlee also points out that the green west fulfills an important task in summer: “On hot days, the allotment garden areas are gateways through which cool air can flow from the block land into the city at night.” Large blocks of flats would be counterproductive to this effect.
As chairwoman of the State Association of Garden Friends, Viola Falkenberg represents the interests of allotment gardeners.
Photo: Frank Thomas Koch
Instead, the environmental department is using an option that does not conflict with “urban air conditioning.” “In the past four years we have developed around 25 fallow plots in the west of Bremen into orchards as part of compensation measures in accordance with the Federal Nature Conservation Act,” explains Schlee. Compensations are sometimes necessary when green spaces disappear in other parts of the city as a result of new construction projects.
According to Schlee, in around 25 cases the environmental department cleared the plots of rubbish and demolished arbors and quay houses. After explosive ordnance clearance, the areas were replanted with regional seeds and old fruit tree varieties from the greater Bremen area.
For Falkenberg in the future it should also be about which urban areas there might be a need for new allotment gardens. “I think it’s a mistake that this wasn’t considered at all when the Überseestadt was developed,” she argues. She has the impression that the interest that has grown during the pandemic is not a flash in the pan. “Of course, some young people have turned their backs on their gardens again. But many are sticking with it,” emphasizes Falkenberg.
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