Koloniträdgårdsförbundet

In 1895 the first allotment garden area was established in Malmö in the south of Sweden. In Stockholm the first allotment gardens were established in 1904. The local authorities were inspired by Anna Lindhagen, a woman in the upper ranks of society, who visited allotment gardens in Copenhagen and was delighted by them.

At about the same time allotment garden areas were established in many parts of Sweden. The Swedish Federation, established in 1921, today represents some 22 856 allotment and leisure gardeners. The members are organised in about 229 local societies all over Sweden. The land is usually leased from the local authorities but each member owns his cottage (if there is one). In Stockholm and some other towns you can only sell your cottage through the association. In the rest of Sweden the allotments with cottages are sold on the open market, which has lead to rising prices all over the country.

Together with 19 other garden organisations in Sweden, we organise The Swedish National Federation of Leisure Gardening organisations (in Swedish: FritidsOdlingens Riksorganisation, FOR). FOR is recognised as being a representative of the 2.5 million gardening households in Sweden. Together with Stockholm International Fairs FOR is the organiser of the big gardening exhibition Nordic Gardens, the most important garden exhibition in the Nordic countries.

We are also a member of Studiefrämjandet, one of the largest study associations for adult education in Sweden.