By Johannes Malinowski
The Steinberg Allotment Association has existed for 105 years. Laubenpieper Peter Schwenzer is 64 years old and has been with us since he was a child. A tradition spanning generations.
The 288 square meter lot has been in the family longer than Peter Schwenzer is old. In 1956 – a year before he was born – his parents took over the piece of land. Before that, the family from Gesundbrunnen owned a property in Schulzendorf.
When the Schwenzer family came to Wittenau, everything was a sandy desert. “There wasn’t even a lawn, just a walkway down the middle and our old cabin.”
Over the years the trees grew taller and the green paradise was created. A carefree childhood between hedges and arbours. At the end of the 1960s, the Schwenzers were the first in the colony to have a television in the arbor. Power came from a 12 volt battery.
Only one gardening enthusiast has been with us for as long as Peter Schwenzer. Most of the allotment gardeners are newcomers over the years.
A colony of arbors is life in a magnifying glass
Quarrels, friendships, fates. Peter Schwenzer met his future wife Manuela in the clubhouse, and her parents also had a plot here.
656 plots belong to the Steinberg allotment garden association (existing for 105 years), in which the Schwenzer family arbor is located (yellow square) Photo: Christian Lohse
1989 the wedding, 1991 the birth of daughter Julia. In 1992, the young family took over the plot from their parents. Two years later they built the new hut together and took care of the garden. Later the separation, in 2020 Manuela died of cancer.
As soon as the weather permits, Peter Schwenzer spends the time out here. Always there: the two tomcats Paulchen and Findus. The trained typesetter has been retired since 2019. He worked for the Bundesdruckerei for 45 years.
The gardener is happy about the tomatoes Photo: Christian Lohse
“It’s a summer paradise because I can move freely here,” he says. “I come outside and I have my gym shorts on.” No one needs smart clothes here. And traveling has never been his thing: “That’s why I have my garden. I just feel great out here.”
There is a huge sweet cherry on the lawn in front of his arbor. A memory of his father who died in the late 1990s. “He planted the tree in the early 1970s,” says Schwenzer. “This year I harvested seven kilos of cherries with my neighbor.” The harvest failed last year. The tree smelled of alcohol, the fruit was so fermented. “After the bloom came the frost. There were gone the beautiful cherries.”
Only things that Peter Schwenzer likes grow in the garden, including tomatoes, peppers and iceberg lettuce. “I just got a bucket of prunes from my neighbor,” he says. “The neighbors always have to agree on who is growing what. Where else to go with the quantities?” Grateful buyers are also raccoons and birds.
The two tomcats Paulchen and Findus also move into the 24 square meter arbor in the summer Photo: Christian Lohse
The friendly coexistence with the neighbors is otherwise the key to happiness. “Of course there are Querköppe in some corners. But unlike in an apartment building, you don’t live next door to each other here.”
If he wants to avoid someone, he just shifts gears. “I’m known like a sore thumb,” says the allotment gardener. “I also know almost everyone.” He himself works as a water meter reader in the club, gets around so much.
Reinickendorf
That’s why he sees everything that changes here. Parcels become overgrown, at some point new tenants move in. Young people, families, people from other countries. What’s different today? “More fruit and vegetables used to be grown.” A job that many new allotment gardeners underestimate: “Many are just looking for a place to relax.”
And in the future? Since Peter Schwenzer relies on daughter Julia. The trained gardener and landscaper regularly visits her father in his paradise. “I would be happy if she would take over the garden at some point.” She would then be a third-generation allotment gardener in the family.
A small garden takes a lot of time and love. Many new pipits are looking for relaxation Photo: Christian Lohse
This summer happiness costs 1000 euros a year
►The paradise historically: The Steinberg allotment garden was founded in 1917. In 1956 Peter Schwenzer’s parents took over the parcel.
►This is how I got my paradise: “In 1992, my then wife and I took over the garden from my parents,” says Peter Schwenzer. Today the waiting lists are long. Interested parties can wait up to several years for a plot.
►How much space is in the garden? The piece of land is 288 square meters. The arbor has 24 square meters. This is what the federal allotment garden law wants.
In the colony, Peter Schwenzer also met his wife, who had since died Photo: Christian Lohse
►How much does pleasure cost? Peter Schwenzer: “Around 1000 euros a year with lease, charges, electricity, insurance, water and plants.”
►The greatest happiness here: “I love taking a few steps outside and sitting in my own little kingdom,” says allotment gardener Schwenzer. “I feel great out here.”
►And in the winter? Since the garden rests and Peter Schwenzer has another hobby: his model railway (gauge N from Fleischmann). “When I know that it will soon be back in the direction of the garden, then it tingles.”
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