AVID gardener Alison Cooke has been tending to her allotment in Oakhill for the past three years, and is now an advocate of being self-sufficient. The 42-year-old, who lives in Trent Vale, makes jams, chutneys and other produce from what she grows. She has even established a bartering system with neighbouring gardeners to ensure everyone has all the ingredients they need at their fingertips.

Alison, who works for the family information service, says: "When I was growing up I was taught how to garden properly, and my mum used to do a lot of cooking. So I have simply brought the two things together. I don't like waste, and my husband and I try to grow everything we need."

The allotment that Alison rents is off Shilton Close in Oakhill, and is owned by Stoke-on-Trent City Council. This year she has successfully grown enough vegetables to last her and her husband over the summer months – meaning their food bills have been dramatically reduced.

She says: "I also use the back garden at our flat. It's not a massive area, but I can grow things in containers. We like root vegetables, and have been very successful with potatoes, parsnips and beetroot so far, as well as peas and green beans. We've even been able to grow some pumpkins.

"Some people grow 'ornamental' things – stuff that is nice to look at – but we've been focusing on things that grow quickly and are useable. And anything we can't use straight away gets dried, so it doesn't go to waste.

"There's a bartering system in place with two people whose houses back on to our allotment plots. One lady has apple trees, and another has plums. So we swap our fruit and veg. I use the apples and plums to make chutneys and jams, which I give away as gifts. I made pumpkin chutney for the first time this year – it was delicious."

Besides the obvious money-saving benefits of growing her own produce, Alison has another reason to tend to her plants on a regular basis. "It's so relaxing," she says. "And that's the main thing for me. I got married back in May and two weeks later my dad passed away. It was a massive upheaval of emotions during that time period, but gardening and tending to my herbs really helped.

"There are lovely views from the allotment and it's a wonderful place to think and reflect. Gardening brings you down to earth, and you've got the birds singing and plants growing around you.

"It's also a great way to create life rather than to waste it. We've become such a wasteful society, that that kind of thing is very important. I don't want to be controversial but there are a lot of people who do not give a damn about the environment, and assume that someone else will sort out all the problems. I'm just a regular Stokie, but this is a topic that everyone needs to be looking at. I've become very passionate about trying to limit my impact on the environment – my conscience gets pricked every time I forget my 'bag for life' and have to use a carrier bag in the supermarket for example – and gardening has helped me to do that.

"You don't have to resort to chemicals and other harmful products. Things like nettles can be used in so many ways as a healing aid, and I use vegetable peelings as a natural compost. Everything I grow is organic.

"Gardening isn't just for people who are retired. I work full time and do a lot of overtime, yet I still make sure I tend to my plants. I'd like to see parents doing more things like gardening with their children – it's a very sociable activity."