From the archives: Berridale - the history

BERRIDALE ALLOTMENTS & GARDENS ASSOCIATION

IAN B. SCOTT

RESEARCHER AND EDITOR

PLOT 9

Acknowledgements and thanks to 1990/1991 Committee

Harold Platt

Scottish Allotments and Gardens Society

BERRIDALE - THE HISTORY


WHEN

At the turn of the Century, the area was open land on which football was played by the locals, and on occasions even cricket.

Although Holmhead Road was there, only a single row of terraced houses had been built in Balmoral Avenue. Around 1920 a number of plots appeared, probably because of the aftermath of the war coupled with the depression, food was scarce and money tight.

The surrounding area included the Old Snufmill to the South, the Parish Church and manse to the east and the main Glasgow to East Kilbride Road to the West. Cathcart was not the size it is now.

Later in the 20s the allotments grew and were being laid out in a more organised fashion but were still ad hoc. In the mid 30s the ground was acquired by Laidlaws and the semi-detached bungalows on the west side were built. About now the street name was changed to Berridale Avenue. The terraced houses were on the ‘even ‘ side, the bungalows on  the 'odd' side . On the valuation roll, compiled in 1936 and issued in 1937, the 'odd' side was not listed although the houses were in the process of being constructed. There were plans for a second row but the city fathers in their wisdom ruled that because the river Cart overflowed from time to time, a brick retaining (or retarding) wall was to be built. The builders were not prepared to meet this requirement due to the high costs involved. The final result - no further houses were built.

HOW

And so it came to pass etc., here was a piece of ground, full of allotments with no organised leadership. The situation was ripe for a take-over.

On the 11th May 1937 a Committee was formed, a minute book was created, and an organised association was born. It was christened the 'Balmoral Plotholders Association'. The original name of the Avenue on the west side.

On the acquisition of the ground, rents were paid to them. The first move was to obtain the names of the plotholders who had not paid their rents. The Committee undertook to collect these rents, thereby knowing who were genuine plotholders and who were 'squatters'. The first Committee was made up of

G. Gilchrist - President

J.W. Brown - Secretary/Treasurer

The Committee consisted of Alexander McCaskill, McCulloch, Dingwell and Gentiles.
The site gate had to be locked and keys were bought by all the members.
A notice stating 'Private Ground' was displayed. A levy was made on each member in order to affiliate the Association to the Scottish Association. This were some of the first moves made by the newly formed Committee.

Now read on.

From a standing start, the discussions took place and in due course a format began to emerge. In July a meeting was arranged with the Trustees of the Wardrop Trust who were responsible for looking after the interests of the ground. A meeting was arranged to obtain security of tenure. During 1938 no great progress was made other than to mark out the plots and create regular pathways. By the start of 1938 there was a grand total of £5.0.5.1/2d in our funds.

The Scottish Association had been in touch and had sent out proposals for a Constitution and Rules.

In April of that year the Constitution and Rules were made up. Huts were limited in size to 12ft, 8ft & 6ft with a 2ft space between the roads and internal paths. Rents were fixed at 7/6d and the name changed to Berridale Allotments Association and a move was made to purchase the ground outright.

By the Annual General Meeting in November 1939 there was a total of £17.16.9.1/2 in the funds but more importantly there was by now a war in progress.

Committee meetings were held when possible when the personnel were available.
These meetings could be, and often were finished early and in a hurry.

One year later at the A.G.M., George Ronald became Vice-Chairman. A name to remember.

The Association applied to the Ministry of Agriculture for a grant to install a water supply and a hut. The grant would only be given for one or the other but not both. Packing cases were available from a local engineering company for a hut so the decision was taken that the river could suffice the Association's needs in the short term.

The 1941 went along as well as could be expected. In September we raffled six parcels of vegetables with the proceeds going to the Red Cross Fund. From somewhere a bottle of whisky appeared and it too was raffled at 6d a ticket. One hundred tickets were sold and in October the Association handed over to the Red Cross the sum of £31.

At the 1941 A.G.M. the question of the water supply was put in abeyance because of the War effort the necessary materials were impossible to obtain. At this meeting George Ronald became President. In December of that year Mr. F. Shoesmith was made an Honorary Member. This gentleman was a local business man who had done a great deal for the local people of Cathcart. He also provided the Edith Cottage for the use of the older men of the district. The Shoesmith business empire was the Fairy Dye Company.

In 1943 the repair of the boundary fence at Holmhead Road was taken up with Trust.
In that year a Red Cross sale was being held in Mr. Buchan's, a local garage at the entrance to the Allotments. A number of stalls were set up at this sale.

Berridale Allotments were asked and readily agreed to a 'submission' that the local authorities be empowered to provide land for plots and the tenure last at least three years after the cessation of the war.

During 1944 and because of business commitments of the members no administration meetings were held at all. At the first available meeting in February the rents were held at 7/6d (37.5p)

February also saw further discussions regarding the boundary fence at Holmhead Road, these discussions took place between the four interested parties, the Glasgow Corporation, the Trust, Laidlaws and ourselves. The title deeds were checked and the terms of the lease consulted to try and obtain some form of agreement between the parties. A letter from the Corporation said that the proprietors were liable and a similar letter from the trust said that the Association were liable.

Unfortunately following complaints from the local residents the police were involved. Laidlaws then estimated that a total cost of £12.10/- would cover the cost of repair to the fence, at this stage the Trust agreed to go 50-50. The Association then agreed to make a ex gratia payment to cover the costs.

Unfortunately after all the discussion and final agreements the materials were not available - thanks to Adolf who had a lot to answer for. Following a plea for more harmony it was decided to run whist drives if suitable venues could be found. We ourselves were still looking for a hut or rail wagon to use as a meeting place.

Committee meetings at this stage were very irregular but as 1945 saw the end of the war and the hope we could get back to normal. There is no record in the minutes for this period of losses of any members directly due to the hostilities.

There was an annual show arranged for September 1946, but unfortunately had to be cancelled. A revised set of Constitution and Rules was passed in 1946.

The attendance for the A.G.M. in 1946 became a record of 31 members.

The Association received notification from the Corporation that they had no immediate plans to build houses on the ground.

The keeping of livestock was discontinued.
The year is now 1947 and an offer was made by the Association to the Trustees to purchase the ground. An initial offer of £50 - £75 per acre was proposed. This offer was rejected. To further the cause a special meeting was held in June with the Secretary of the Scottish Association present. It was agreed that we would raise our offer to between £200 and £400 for the whole area.

Mr McWilliams (Scottish Association) )proposed that when the Association reached the figure of £200 that he would confer with the trust and also apply for a grant on our behalf. A levy of £5 per member in the association was agreed and in August of that year the Trust accepted our offer of £400. The levy had gone up to £10 and a three man sub-committee was set up to handle any hardship cases that may arise.

With the advent of the title deeds being prepared the Association agreed that George Dingwall and James McGarvie would be the Trustees.

The September Gala day raised £57 pounds for the Association funds. The Association received an offer from 'The Misses Cruickshank Trust' of help and assistance to purchase our grounds. The loan scheme already had proved to be adequate.

In due course the Title Deeds came to hand only to be returned for correction, Apparently the Title Deeds noted that for our £400, we were in ownership of the bulk of Cathcart. The Association duly returned the Deeds. The mind still boggles at the possible outcome. The Association could have finished up being the wealthiest allotment of the decade.

At this point another name to remember is Willie Moffat. His father had notified the Association that he was proposing to give up his plot in favour of his son, at this point the minute book(s) covering the years 1947 - 1957 are missing. To complete our history it would be appreciated that if any member knows of the whereabouts of any minute books could he get in touch with me.

Apart from that it's reasonably safe to say that during this period we purchased new perimeter railings and reinforced the river banking with the addition of trees and shubbery.

It was always the Association aim to provide a meeting/storage area, due to the war effort this was impossible. A construction from packing cases or a rail wagon were the first options until 'something' suitable came along. Our then Secretary George Ronald, worked in the The City Tramworks at Coplawhill during the 1949/50s, we were able to obtain a tram, it was sited where our canteen is located at present. This tram was a single decker No. 1009 which started life as a No. 9 belonging to the Paisley District Tramway Company of Elderslie. This tram was open topped and carried 22 passengers on the lower deck and 33 on the open top deck. Glasgow Corporation took over the Paisley Company and the No. 9 became the No. 1009 on a run from Clydebank Duntocher and based at Partick. This tram was one of 17 refurbished at Coplawhill where the top deck seats were removed and the platforms modified.

The Association kept this tram as a meeting place during the 60s. Plans were being drawn up to replace it with a permanent building. Midway through 1963 the Lowland Engineering Company took the tram back to Coplawhill for refurbishing to museum status. In fact it went to the Dalmarnock Gas Works. The Glasgow Transport Museum already had a single decker and it was eventually scrapped.

Through George Ronald a number of bits and pieces of trams were acquired and several greenhouses were built.

Rolling along through and into the 50s, there was still a lot to be done. We had created the Association in the 30s, gone through the war and purchased our ground in the 40s, the next objective was to have a building in which to store our fertilisers, have meetings and social gatherings and above all to have our annual show under a more substantial cover.

The Annual Show had an 'open day' in more ways than one. We hired the Couper Institute and enlisted the help of the Scouts and their marquee. As usual the September weather threw everything at us. One year the marquee all but disappeared. The Committee are always watchful and when a hut became available at Kirkintilloch it looked like the ideal solution but unfortunately the deal fell through. Oh there was always the tram but it was not large enough.

Towards the end of the decade Glasgow was about to have it's own airport. What has that to do with Berridale you may ask? The site for the new airport was then the Royal Navy Air Station at Abbotsinch and the site had to be cleared by the end of 1957. This clearance included planes, buildings and all naval gear including the huts. The Committee made arrangements to go down to see what was on offer. For the sum of £350 dismantling and carriage we could get a hut 50ft long and 20ft wide. We did a bit of haggling and for £350 all in and the Association became the owners of the hut as it stands at present.

It was delivered on Christmas Day 1957. What a stocking filler. The site was more or less earmarked but there was a problem in that it encroached on a member's plot and he was not happy. Any compromise was difficult and even endeavouring to relocate him was hard. There were eventually three special meetings held to resolve the problem. Eventually the Committee 'pulled rank'. All plots were 200 sq. feet and his was considerably larger. The extra area on this plot could easily site the hut. The was not acceptable to this member, as all other proposals failed, the Association lost a member.

To finance the erection of the hut which included piling, a loan scheme was proposed and a figure of £5 was agreed. Mr Barr a local builder agreed to do the piling work at a cost of £21. All the local residents in Berridale agreed to the site location, indeed if any three had objected the site would have had to be relocated elsewhere.

During 1958 a squad set about erecting the hut and in early April works started and by June the job was finished. The 'Scottish' made an application on our behalf to the Department of Agriculture for a grant for fitting out. The seven stalwarts who formed the squad were sincerely thanked by the Association and their work saved a considerable expense.

The electricity supply was put in by Tom Shearer and Harold Platt. The water supply was laid in by Association members and the remainder of the fitting out work done during 1958/59.

The 1959 Annual Show raised a total of £70 of which 36 tables were bought at a cost of £30. The Annual subscription was raised to One Pound one Shilling and sixpence (old money). In that year a ground Committee was also formed.

Going into the 60s the Association were dealt a blow. One of the founder members and Trustee George Dingwall died. George had been President for thirteen years and as mark of appreciation for all his untiring work a commemorative plaque was placed in the main hut. The floor of the hut was covered during this period.
Willie Moffat was elected as his successor 1959, remember his name cropped up eleven years earlier. Willie also held the office as Show Convenor from 1960 to 1962.

In the early 60s approaches were made through a solicitor with the view to buying the ground for building. These approaches were strongly rejected. The Glasgow Corporation had shown no intention of doing any building themselves.

A band of keen gardeners, the majority all local residents had a sense of belonging. This coupled with a place to go were following a great hobby in good company.
A small Committee were laying on bus runs, theatre night and whist drives all for the enjoyment of the members, wives and  girl friends (or both) Oh yes ladies joined in as well, I expect some could be considered 'plot widows' but never the less more and more were joining in. A few ladies also had plots of their own.

While the Association welcomed the ladies the facilities or accommodation was not suitable so the Association decided there was a problem to solve. The Committee were good at solving problems. What was needed was toilets, kitchen and canteen facilities.

In 1961 moves were afoot to extend the main hut with a lean-to extension. Plans had to be drawn up and permission sought. While these plans were being made we lost two more good friends. The Hon. Vice President Mrs. McLaren and in 1962 H. Platt senior or 'pop' as he was known. Pop had been one of the founder members and was responsible for a power of work being carried out at Berridale. 'Young' Harold, his son took over to carry on the good work.

During all the discussions on the extension it was pointed out by a number of the squad to the effect that the undertaking was a big job and assistants were thin on the ground apart from the small group who had built the main hut and it was to be hoped that more 'willing' helpers could be found.

Prior to the Dean of Guild passing our plans in November 1962 other problems arose in that we had to purchase a flame gun to do battle the weeds but the river overflowed.

The engineers were called out by the Glasgow Corporation to examine the river bed before any other remedial action could be done. By 1963 the tram was gone.
Another loan of £2 or more per member was needed to pay for the extension which was estimated would cost around £550. We had permission to build and by now also had the necessary materials. A squad got together and with a lot of hard graft the new building was under way. Water and electricity were laid in and the interior painted. The kitchen and toilets were finished and in use for the 1964 Annual Show.
The Scottish Association applied for a grant on our behalf again.

Among some of the highlights of 1964 apart from the completion of the huts was the nomination of George Ronald for the Scottish Service Medal and the Association award of the Scottish Agricultural Medal.

Three new groups were added to the Show schedule for the Chrysanthemums section and all show entries must be grown at Berridale Allotments.
There was moves to extend the electric supply to cover some all of the greenhouses but there was no response from within the membership.
In 1965 another innovation took place - the water supply was extended up through the middle of the allotments to cover three quarters of the plots.

Permission had to be approved and a meter was installed by the water board.
The work piping up to the taps and stand pipes was done by Andy Weir who was a new member to the Association.

A further two trophies were subscribed for the Association members to aim at. These trophies were the Mrs Wilson and George Ronald Cups. In May the Association won the R.H.S. Medal and at the November A.G.M. we received a severe shock when we were presented with our new rates bill.

This amount was perhaps one of the largest single item of expenditure we were faced with, and had to be funded from the Annual Show. This was of course was not the number one reason for the show, it's main aim was to exhibit to the public our progress in the horticultural field. There was a small admission charge and along with the sale of our produce which covered the costs incurred with laying out the stalls, organising and exhibiting the plants and flowers, hopefully after these items were met there would be enough to help pay for the rates bill. There was an appeal and the Association won a reduction.

In the centrefold of this booklet there are examples of the type of advertising that we did during the 80s and early 90s. Lately our posters have been more colourful and produced on a standard A4 sheet produced by Pat Dunlop.

During 1968 there was a 'no fires' rule introduced during the months of July, August and September, this was done to ensure that the smoke could not damage some of the more delicate plants and flowers.


1968 came in with literally a bang or was it a blow. The January gales caused severe damage and the allotments suffered along with the rest of the country.
The rest of the year was not completely idle. The Committee meetings carried on and dispensed the usual run of the mill business with their usual wisdom.
It was during this season and almost every other season the rains fell and fell, consequently the main pathways into and around the plots got very messy underfoot, the answer - slabbing. This was not a cheap answer even then. Over the next few months a costing exercise was carried out which all pointed to a DIY solution. Eventually because of the high costs the matter was held over to the next season.

For the annual show that year the Association obtained tubular scaffolding and tarpaulins. The following Year 1969 the Association ordered the cement and 'whin' dust in preparation for the laying of the slabs. With a twice weekly production schedule a fair number of slabs were being made on a weekly basis. A squad started laying the slabs in July. Eventually slabs had to be purchased to supplement the slabs which had been made. Although a fairly small squad turned up the main paths apart from the bend at the top end was soon laid. At this stage red shale was brought in for the plotholders to spread adjacent to the plots and along side the slabs.

The show that year had a 'first' and a 'last'. After the judging for the trophies, the first prize and trophy for the class 'pot leeks' was declared null and void. The entry of leeks in question had been queried by a visitor from a nearby Association, unfortunately as it turned out and was proven, the leeks had not been grown by our member within the grounds of the plots. The prize was offered to the second place but was declined. The offending member resigned. Because of this sour note at the show, the October meeting produced a questionnaire for prospective new members to complete, this was aimed to assess their suitability.

Willie Moffat held the position of Show Convenor for three years up to 1962. From 1963 and for the next six years the position was held in the very capable hands of Harold Platt who along with his father had been a founder member from the beginning.

In 1970 the A.G.M appointed a new Show Convenor. There was no criticism of Harold who had done an excellent job in both appointments over the years but it was felt that there was time for a change. Bill Dunlop who had been involved in the business of the show, and indeed still is, was chosen. Between Willie and Harold the format of the Annual Show emerged and is still intact to this day.
We certainly owe the two members a huge vote of thanks.
Bill Dunlop held the post for a number of years, he was followed by Rodger Stark.

Going into the seventies we had a new Secretary/Treasurer, Andy Weir, when Andy accepted the position it was for a period of two years.

One highlight in the '70s was Rodger Stark taking 4th place in the St Mungo Trophy which is judged by the Glasgow Corporation and is competed for by all the allotments in the Glasgow area.

By March of the following year, the frontage of the main hut had been replaced and the paint to finish the job was to hand.

The rateable value had jumped from £48 to a total of £105 and after discussions with similar Associations we discovered that two Associations were not paying rates at all and a decision was made that we should appeal.

Meanwhile back at Berridale we were still taking prizes. In the St Mungo Trophy Jim Simson took the second prize and Rodger Stark took the Glasgow Federation Cup.
There were two changes within the Committee, Andy Weir was replaced by Jim Clark and Douglas Grant replaced Bill Dunlop as Show Convenor.

In 1972 the Association won the appeal against the rateable value but the Glasgow City Council took to appeal in Edinburgh.
This year also saw the loss of Reg. Ashley, Reg. had been a former Secretary to the Scottish Association and took a keen interest in Berridale so much so that when he retired as their Secretary he joined Berridale and served on the Committee.
Being a professional gardener his advice was invaluable.

In 1973 Willie Robertson took over as Secretary/Treasurer with Bill Dunlop taking over again as Show Convenor. The ladies Day that year was again an outstanding success.

With the proposed expressway running along side the allotments and along Delvin Road we now knew the 93 square metres would be under a compulsory purchase order, a new saga would now commence.
 
The rates appeal by Glasgow City Council in Edinburgh was heard before Lords Fraser, Avonside and Keith. They ruled against the Association stating that if we had stored peat, lime, fertiliser etc. in our huts we would have won on the basis that we would have been classed as being a horticultural society. As it was we stored tables and chairs which were in effect were only used a couple of times a year. While the City had won, the Association were landed with a sizeable lawyers bill. Willie Robertson our new Secretary had little idea what in fact he had been letting himself in for.

After all the excitement of 1973 the following year was calmer. One member left over an issue regarding untidy plots. The ladies branched out to the Edith Cottage for a successful night out.

Moving through into 1975 Tom Creighton took over as Show Convenor and a new Constitutional Committee was formed. This was made up as follows Chairman,
Vice Chairman, Secretary/Treasurer, Show Convenor, Groundsman and 9 other members. The nine members of the Committee could serve three, two or one year depending on the commitments. After a three year spell they could not be re-elected as a Committee member for at least twelve months. The Chrysanthemum and Dahlia Society held a film show for the members. In mid January 1976 the canteen was broken into and a number of items were stolen.

Another successful tea was held by the ladies on the 14th June. Mr Martin a local Seedsman in Clarkston Road agreed to give a 10% discount on all purchases on production of a discount card obtainable from the Secretary.

Talk about hard times the cost of living rose again, the cost of a cuppa in the canteen rose to 5p (OAP 3p) )I don't know - hard times higher rates etc. even the price of the show tickets went up to 5p.

But all was not doom and gloom, Tom Creighton won the first prize in the St. Mungo Trophy. That year we also won third prize. A social evening was held in February with a 'get to know' you evening, in all it was a very pleasant evening and names were given to faces you could not place. In the spring Mr Brodie and son gave a lecture to the Association and behold the new rates bill arrived.

The members were doing particularly well in the St. Mungo, Tom Creighton won it for the second time in a row. The A.G.M. that year attracted a record attendance with a total of 36 coming. A donation was received from the Ladies which helped towards the running costs. The major event of 1977 was the fact that the main hut was settling. Early in the year an expert was called into examine the overall structure and recommended that repair work be carried out. This work was carried out at a total cost of £65.

In 1977 Stewart Gunn's fourth place kept Berridale's name on the St. Mungo Trophy. In that year new office bearers were elected to the Committee, these were Ian Welsh - Chairman, Alan Murray - Vice Chairman, Tom Creighton - Secretary,  John McCulloch - Groundsman and Stewart Gunn - Show Convenor.

In May of 1978 there was a bright light to shine in that the Association's name was deleted from the valuation role. The money could now go into our coffers and not that of the City Assessor. Although that was the good news the question of the new road was still there. A sub-committee was formed to keep the members in the picture.

On the bad side there was the sudden death of Willie Moffat who had been ill for some time. Willie had taken over his father's plot in the 40s and was a force in running Berridale. In 1959 he became President and remained in that post until he retired in 1977, a total of 18 years dedicated work to the allotments. Today a plaque in the main hall commemorates his service. His wife Jean has continued to work with the Ladies Committee.

The Association suffered a further loss in November. John McCulloch passed away. John was a big man both in stature and the effort he put in on behalf of Berridale. A long serving member who was involved in the building of the main hut and the canteen. He was also busy maintaining a high standard throughout the Allotments. John served on the Committee as groundsman and other Committee Offices that would benefit Berridale. Despite the losses to the Association the season ended on a high note when Tom Creighton won third in the St. Mungo but had to relinquish Committee duties due to ill health. The Association won the Glasgow Federation Cup for the second year in succession.

New appointments to the Committee during 1979 were Ian Scott - Secretary and Douglas Grant - Groundsman. New Trustees were appointed in place of Willie Moffat and John McCulloch. Rodger Stark took over as Show Convenor, a position he covered with success for ten years.

The new road was scheduled to begin in 1981. The then Chairman Ian Welsh covered a lot of ground trying to establish what was happening about the proposed project. After many meetings with the Region we were no further forward and to this date no further forward. No decision regarding the surrounding houses or the proposed plans have ever been finalised. Without doubt sometime in the future it will arise again.

A small committee was set up to re-examine the Constitution and Rules and make recommendations to the General Committee. The Annual Lecture for the members was arranged but the attendance was low. The weather boarding in the main hut had to be replaced, a time limit for the end of June was proposed. The actual day weather permitting was the 8th June. At this point the Committee discussed the situation where major jobs undertaken and volunteers putting their names down and then failing to turn up or as in most cases not bothering at all. Some form of penalties was discussed but it was felt that it could not be administrated and would not be in the spirit of the Association. The Committee examining the Constitution and Rules proposed that no major changes were necessary although a number of small rules were added. Such was the good sense of the founders long ago.

The A.G.M of 1980 created another record in that 37 members attended.
After discussion Alan Murray was proposed as Chairman a post he held with distinction for ten years. During this time a mighty power of work was put in by him.

The Show tickets went up to 10p and more to the point the canteen prices went up to 7p (OAP 5p) at the time of publication of this booklet the prices have remained the same.

Things rolled through 1981. The Committee meetings were dealing with the day to day things that turn up. i.e. blocked drains which backed up to Berridale Avenue where the residents were at the receiving end of all the overflow. An outside contractor was called in but unfortunately he lost the water jet nozzle down the drain which could have resulted in six to eight plots having to be dug up. The Association could not agree to this, but eventually it was recovered and the situation was resolved satisfactorily.

The Annual Show was again successful and Ian Welsh was placed third in the St Mungo. With all his previous trips to the City Chambers regarding his meetings about the proposed new road he knew his way about when he went for his presentation. The A.G.M. set another record when 38 members turned up. To date this is a record.

Ian Dickson became Secretary/Treasurer. You may have noted that in recent times there was no mention of the Glasgow Federation Cup, this was due mainly to the decline of the Federation activities, it eventually ceased shortly after this.

The thorny subject of painting the railings arose during 1982. It had been included in the Committee Minutes earlier in the year but due to the lack of volunteers and push by the Committee August saw no work done. As the Committee felt that it was not their responsibility alone to accomplish the task.

Earlier that year Tom Creighton again won the St. Mungo Trophy and Douglas Grant won the Chrysanthemum and Dahlia medal. It would appear that some discussions were still ongoing regarding the new road layout as the Association were offered compensation. After negotiation a figure of £150 was agreed.

In 1983 the Cathcart District Open Day was supported by Berridale in the form of a flower and vegetable display.

1984 saw the Holmhead fence on the agenda again, this time it was proposed that the internal painting of the railings to be completed by June. The external painting was to be carried out later in the year. Other outstanding jobs to be completed were the tidying up of the main paths, the purchase of red shale and the barrowing of it to different plots. The Ladies had another successful show in June.

To bring the readers up to date regarding the Ladies Committee. This was not a part of the official Berridale set up. The ladies had organised themselves, complete with a bank account with which they assisted the Annual Show. This included baking for the tea room, baking for the baking stall, Tombola, Preserves and Bric-a-Brac.
Such help and organisation over the years has been invaluable and the Association owes them a huge debt. Ladies thank you one and all.

In 1985 the Association replaced a storage hut at the cost of £400. The hut is used primarily for storing fertiliser etc.

At the A.G.M. a number of points were cleared up. The Insurance cover for the hut was going into orbit, the decision was taken to insure only the trophies and our third party risks on Show day. Trees were the next point, no further trees were to be planted in the plots except on the banking for binding. Any fruit trees had to be grown cordon style and to a maximum height of six to eight feet.
The posts of Secretary and Treasurer were separated for the first time.

During 1985 and 1986, Strathclyde Region compulsorily purchased some of the dwelling property adjacent to Delvin Road and Berridale Avenue, was this for the new road - again? With the decanting of the residents also came problems with security.

Over the years the Clyde River Purification Board had been working to clean rivers and streams, lo and behold fish started to appear in the River Cart adjacent to the Allotments. This was good but it brought another problem - with the arrival of fish, arrived fishermen. Initially there were problems with the fishermen coming onto what was private property. No real harm was done but a watch had to be maintained to ensure that no damage was being done. In 1991 the Glasgow Herald had a report that there were poachers operating on the rivers Clyde and Kelvin so it would appear that the Purification Board had more problems than us.

During 1986 the Association was a long time without a groundsman as there were no volunteers for the job. There were times when a groundsman would have long waits on cold days to take delivery of materials, dispensing paraffin and watching the property. A motion to scrap the Honoraria was soon rejected.

In December a presentation was made to Alan & Carrie Murray who had been President for a number of years. Both Alan and Carrie had been highly active on behalf of the Association and have to be thanked.

In March of 1987 the Association reluctantly accepted the resignation of Willie Robertson. Willie had become a member in 1962/63 and his house in Old Castle Road overlooked the plots. When he was Secretary he had been involved in the rating issue. Due to poor health he felt he could not maintain his plot to a standard he would have liked. Despite having retired from the Association he would help out whenever he could doing the odd jobs most people forgot about. He would do the work related to the Show tickets for each member and prepared the prize cards. He was made a Honorary member in 1989. Sadly Willie passed away in 1991 but his name stays with us in the form of a Trophy donated by his son.

The Glasgow Garden Festival was in 1998. Tom Creighton had been in contact with other Associations including New  Victoria Gardens to co-ordinate arrangements. The Festival arrangements were finalised in early May but unfortunately Tom Creighton had to resign due to ill health.

On the Festival site there were three demonstration plots on show and it was agreed to man one off them each Tuesday during the duration of the Festival. Matt King who was our Secretary at that time arranged a rota of volunteers which included Willie Robertson, Bill Shankland and Allan Murray. The plots had been laid out including greenhouses, sheds and tools. Free passes were available when your 'stint' came around. The whole event had been a mammoth affair with a great number of diverse exhibitors involved.

Meanwhile back at base camp the main hut and canteen roofs were professionally re-felted and about the same time John McLeod won second place in the St. Mungo Trophy. This trophy is put up by The Glasgow District Parks and Recreation Dept. and is competed for throughout Glasgow. The Association nominates what it considers the four best plots and these are submitted for judging. Over the years the Association have had a number of successes in this competition including Jim Simson, Tom Creighton, John McLead, Jim Douglas and Rodger Stark.

Several new rules were introduced at the A.G.M. these included the non-delivery of manure between 31st March and the 30th September. except in boxes and no loose materials purchased through the Association i.e. paraffin and sand had to be taken out of the grounds.

In 1998 the date for the Annual Show was changed to the first Saturday in September. The new date came about with the demise of Holmlea Gardens also to take it away from a number of other events taking place around about the same time.
The Committee were seeking quotations for rewiring work in the main hut and canteen, remember this work had been originally done in 1958 and 1964. A building fund had been created for just such repairs.

The weather in 1989 was good in comparison to the previous years. John McLeod picked the second prize in the St. Mungo again. At the A.G.M. Honorary members were given a vote for the first time and a motion was raised for a second water supply to come from the Holmhead end of the plots. The Committee were charged with costing the scheme although at this stage doubts were raised as to whether the Water Board would agree to a second supply plus the costs may have been prohibitive.
The main hut and canteen were re-felted and made watertight.

Into 1990 we were still entering the St. Mungo Trophy but the New Victoria Allotments were becoming a force to be reckoned with in winning the St. Mungo also. Bill Dunlop was again appointed as Show Convenor.

In 1991 the rewiring was completed, Tom Shearer and Harold Platt's work was being replaced after thirty years. The main railing were again needing painting at the main hut end. Weekly notices were put up looking for volunteers. This created a number of volunteers, although some faces were still missing. The task was almost complete with a small section of railings still needing glossed when the weather turned against us.

In the summer of that year and just before the show, the Association celebrated Jim Douglas's win in the St. Mungo with a show being filmed for the Beechgrove Garden. Walter Gilmour and his crew spent the entire Sunday prior to the show filming, interviewing and presenting Jim with the cup. The show went out on the 23rd September. The weather held good for the Show the following Saturday.

So there you have it. Over fifty years summarised for you. No doubt there are somethings missing (I hope not) but the overall picture shows a group of enthusiasts who created something out of nothing and achieved a great deal.
I can also assure you that the elected Committees over the years have worked hard on your behalf.

We have at Berridale an Association which is the envy of a lot of people. The Committee have done their best for the Association and it is now up the individual members to support the elected Committee.

Here is to the continued success and well being of Berridale Allotments and Garden Association for the next fifty years and more.