FRUSTRATED allotment tenants have called for Hull City Council to take action against those who abandon their plots.
It comes as figures reveal more than 1,200 people are currently waiting for a plot on one of Hull's 21 allotments.
Described as "unusually high" by the National Allotment Association, they have urged local authorities to supply allotments where there is a demand.
Newland Avenue Allotments Association support new tenants across their 26-acre site but find many plots become overgrown within weeks of taking them on because new tenants underestimate the amount of work they need to put in.
Now they want the council to make evicting absent tenants easier to make room for those on the waiting list.
John van den Tooren, 65, chairman of the association, dreams of seeing all 240 Newland Avenue Allotment plots lovingly cared for.
He said: "It is very frustrating and not only that, it can be a bit aggravating as well. Some of the plots haven't been worked on for four years.
"When someone takes on a plot like that, there is a lot of work to overcome and that is what puts a lot of people off."
Mr Van Den Tooren believes tenant agreements are outdated and wants probation periods for new tenants to be included.
Currently, the waiting list is anywhere between six months to five years – although Newland Avenue Allotment Association knows of people who have been waiting for six years.
Association members have offered to tidy up the overgrown plots themselves, but were told they would be trespassing.
Gillian Wilkinson, secretary of the association, said: "The council has created all these rules they can't enforce.
"We are inundated with people who want an allotment so it is frustrating, to see all these unworked plots, but we have no powers. None of it makes any sense."
Just 79 tenants of the council's 1,700 plots across the city are currently under notice to improve.
Doug Sharp, assistant head of service for waste and open spaces, said: "There is a clearly defined inspection regime across the sites to identify uncultivated plots and the council takes appropriate action in all these cases.
"We are actively seeking additional land to make available for residents who wish to grow their own food."
