April Fool

[Weed]

Well it just had to be April Fool's day didn't it

After spending a lovely day out with the family I arrived home to a telephone message that a couple of my double glazing units, one on a cold frame the other over a raised bed had been smashed by vandals last night.

I appear to be the only person that has suffered on this occasion...but as I missed out on several attacks last year I suppose by the law of averages it was bound to come around sooner rather than later.

[oldherbaceous]

Sorry to hear and see that Weed, it really does make my blood boil to see such thoughtless vandalism.
And it is such a pain to clear up broken glass.
Don't let it play on your mind too much Weed.

[Cider Boys]

I am also sorry to read of the mindless destruction carried out by the lowlife that exists in our communities. It is a shame we are not permitted to control their infestation with a lethal injection (harsh but fair)!

Best wishes

Barney

[seedling]

A man on our allotment site has just had a water butt and a spade stolen from his plot. they left his wheel barrow though? Thoughtless, mindless thieving and vandalism - i wish we could put down vandal pellets and watch them shrivel up
Seedling

[Cider Boys]

Hello Seedling

I’ve also had a water butt stolen from my allotment; what do they want them for?

Barney

[Jenny Green]

Giant bongs?

[richard p]

perhaps they are planning a trip over niagra in a barrel.....

a young lady i know had a boyfriend turn up in the early hours having walked about 3 miles from the pub, dragging a wheelie bin cos he thought it looked like her mum's..... even more stupid, plod actually stopped and asked what he was doing staggering up the A361 with a bin, anyway they let him carry on. she must have been impressed they are now married.

[lizzie]

I know all about wanton destruction and vandalism. The plots have been plagued for months. Sheds set on fire, greenhouses with smashed glass, crops pulled up, stuff scattered all over the site.

Since the razor wire and raised fences went up we've had no problems. The little sods tried to get in last week but couldn't get past the razor wire. Some blood was found on the wire......shame, not. Plus, one of the little barstewards was arrested and is now in a young offenders institution, just need the others rounding up and the whole area would be sorted.

It's a small group of about 10 kids causing all this trouble. The whole area was affected by this small group. Things are now on the change for the better.

[Compo]

It's the pits and as a social worker I try and understand it from a different view point, why do they do it and what have they had to suffer to make them do it.

But at the end of the day I wish that they would focus their frustrations elsewhere, in a more constructive way. I feel that one of the reason they do it is that there are no consequences to their actions, even if they get caught they really are aware that they do not have any real punishment to face.

I need to be careful otherwise this thread will just run and run and we will have a full blown socio-economic political debate.

What I can say is that polycarbonate sheet of the type from diy plas (corriboard I think) is extremely vandal proof, I know we shouldnt have to think this way, but when there are bandits around, wear armour.

Compo

[Primrose]

Weed, I really feel for you! It's heartbreaking when this happens and what I'd like to do to these vandals is unprintable. We've had two different allotments over the years. On both occasions we were forced to give them up because so many of our crops were vandalised or stolen. Now I just use most of the back garden for growing vegetables. Not enough space to grow all I would like, but at least I know I won't have the heartbreaking situation of getting them almost to harvesting stage and then having them wrecked and stolen by mindless vandals.

[Weed]

Thanks Primrose...I am past being annoyed at the vandals more frustrated...
I do agree with Compo about the lack of suitable punishments but I would put a lot down to there not being enough done to stimulate young minds.

I am sure that a lot of the older gardeners would welcome some help from these so called bored teenagers and the interaction would maybe benefit some of the young people in a positive way.

The trouble is to set up something like this would mean coming into contact with the EU rules and the politically correction brigade....in other words strangled at birth by red tape

[jopsy]

weed thats such a horrid thing to happen
i do hope you can get it sorted
x

[Compo]

That's not a bad idea you know weed, it might not be illegal as long as you dont inolved anyone else, but how you would fine the culprit and get them digging is another problem.

Compo is thinking, can you hear the grinding and rumbling


Compo

[Mike Vogel]

I've only just caught up with this thread. Sorry you've had these troubles. On our plot, which is at present poorly protected, we had silly things happening over winter. Two of my water butts were turned over - why only two? there were at least six others which were unaffected. Then 2 weekends ago one Friday night some joker came through the allotments with a bolt-cutter and vandalised everybody's locks at their weakest point. Nothing was stolen from anybody; it just put us all to a load of inconvenience. It just proves that there are many more lunatics out of the asylums than in them.

mike

[Johnboy]

Bring back "The Birch" for the vandals and the trouble would stop overnight!!!
Nobody goes back for a second helping!!
JB.