Allotment holders call for action after deer attacks

ALLOTMENT holders in Wargrave are calling for action to combat deer that have “devastated” their crops.

They have complained to the parish council, which owns the allotments in Victoria Road, that the issue is the “worst” it has ever been this year.

Some have already spent about £50 to install netting, poles and plastic fencing to deter the animals after their fruit and vegetables were mauled in the last few months.

One allotment holder claimed to have seen 26 deer roaming the recreation ground earlier this year.

Almudena Cotton, of Kings Acre, wrote to the parish council last month calling for the council to implement measures to limit the damage.

Councillors discussed installing a 6ft perimeter fence but concerns were raised about its effectiveness after Councillor Dick Bush said the deer would still find a way in.

Culling of the animal was also turned down because it was deemed “unpractical” to carry out in a residential area.

Mrs Cotton, who has a small allotment bed, said 75 per cent of her sweetcorn plants were eaten by deer along with her broad and runner beans, and said she was “disheartened”.

She has made calls for a working group to be formed on the council to discuss potential measures which would prevent further damage.

Mrs Cotton, an A-level Spanish and politics teacher at Windsor College, said: “My plot is at the other end to where the deer come in but they have trampled all over it.

“It was chaos. I’ve only got a small bed but they will eat anything that’s going.

“I ended up paying £50, which is a lot for a small allotment patch, to put up metal poles and plastic fencing, which looks horrendous.

“A lot of allotment holders have had to put up preventative measures and it’s not the point of an allotment to spend lots of money to protect a small bed of crops.

“You feel completely disheartened because everything is growing and suddenly the deer come and it’s completely gone.

“They came in last year but didn’t create half as much havoc as this year. If they find a bed they are quite happy just to munch away.

“It may be because there hasn’t been any rain but they are looking for where there are easier pickings.

“The number of people complaining about the havoc the deer have caused has increased. It seems to be a regular theme over the last month.”

Mrs Cotton said the temporary fix around her allotment is working since the incident but remains concerned they will find other ways to enter the plot.

“They could easily come in again,” she said. “As I’ve got plastic mesh around the side, they can stand by the side of the bed, it would be awkward for them, and put their heads over and eat them.

“I’ve got an expensive solution but I don’t know how permanent it will be.”

Rowena Perry, of the Woodclyffe Allotment Society, said holders have warned of giving up their plots because of the extent of the damage this year and believes the deer are coming from Bowsey Woods.

She said: “There have been three allotment holders who have said they are seriously thinking about giving up.

“Ten years or so ago, we didn’t have this issue here at all. This is the worst it has ever been.

”They’ve absolutely devastated people’s crops. They will take the tops out of 20 to 30 sweetcorn plants and pull up and eat all of your beetroot. If they like something, in one night, they will completely destroy it.

”The council has an obligation to control them. It’s frustrating. I’ve spoken to someone at the Henley allotments, who said the fence is effective and the deer don’t get in.”

Miss Perry, of Highfield Park, has protected her crops from damage using netting after a previous incident with the animals led to the destruction of her salad crops.

She said: “I’ve learned from experience that you do it before you lose the crops. It’s soul-destroying because you spend a lot of time and effort with these crops and they come and take the top off the sweetcorn. That’s not something you can resow.”

Councillor Marion Pope said the issue will be raised at the full council meeting this month to address what measures can be introduced and schedule a meeting with the allotment holders.

She said: “We need to come to a solution. If we’re going to fence the whole allotment, it will cost thousands of pounds. If you put up 6ft fencing, the deer can jump 6ft.

“At the moment, nothing is in the offing but it’s something that needs to be sorted out. The deer seem to be more prevalent now.”