They used to be a male refuge but all that is changing. New figures show the number of female allotment holders has risen 900 per cent since the Seventies.

Today, women are throwing on their old rags and braving broken nails in their droves to try their hand at producing their own food.

Allotment holders in Brighton and Hove are now 36 per cent female, according to Henry Christie, the city council's allotment officer.

That may be down to the increasing desire for control over how our food is produced as women become disillusioned with modern farming techniques and food production.

Mr Christie also puts it down to urban living and the fact Brighton and Hove is attracting more and more people sharing a smaller space in which to live.

He said: "There are a lot of people living in flats. Many of these people have moved down from London into Brighton, which has now become so densely populated.

"With the stresses of urban living, having an allotment gives people some space."

Of those holding plots in the city, 55 per cent are in the 35 to 64 age group. Students are taking to growing their own too - 15 per cent are at university or college.

Mr Christie said: "They are being seen as leisure gardens as much as food-producing areas and that has been a big change.

"Nowadays you get quite a lot of people coming on to allotments with children and they put swings on their plots."

Ruth Urbanowicz, of the Brighton and Hove Organic Group, has four allotment plots. She started on her first 12 years ago at a time when not many women were involved.

She said: "I started because I didn't really have any garden to speak of at home and I liked growing things and being outdoors.

"The men there were really supportive and pleased to see some women getting on to the land."

Ruth's father had an allotment and they had a large garden when she was a child. She bought some books and read up about vegetable growing before taking on the challenge.

She said there were two things people should take on board before starting.

"One is to consider sharing an allotment or joining our group without necessarily having one. You could use other people's plots.

"There are also community groups in Moulsecoomb and Whitehawk which run a number of allotments and a number of half plots being made available. It is hard work and some people take them on without realising how much is involved."

The organic group, which has a larger female than male membership, holds monthly meetings in the winter, and would welcome new members.

For information on allotment availability in Brighton and Hove, visit www.brighton-hove.gov.uk or phone 01273 292225. In other areas, contact the district or borough council and ask for the allotment officer.

Brighton and Hove Organic Group can be contacted on 01273 628221 or via their web site, www.bhogg.org