Editing Allotment (gardening) (section)

==Socio-cultural and economic functions==
[[File:FI-Tampere-20131014 161231 HDR.JPG|thumb|An allotment garden in [[Petsamo, Tampere|Petsamo]], [[Tampere]], Finland]]
The [[Luxembourg]]-based {{lang|fr|Office International du Coin de Terre et des Jardins Familiaux}}, representing three million European allotment gardeners since 1926, describes the socio-cultural and economic functions of allotment gardens as offering an improved quality of life, an enjoyable and profitable hobby, relaxation, and contact with nature. For children, gardens offer places to play and to learn about nature, while for the unemployed, they offer a feeling of doing something useful as well as low-cost food. For the elderly and disabled, gardens offer an opportunity to meet people, to share in activity with like-minded people, and to experience activities like planting and harvesting.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.jardins-familiaux.org/office/eng/eoffer.html | title=What do we encourage? | publisher=Office International du Coin de Terre et des Jardins Familiaux | access-date=13 January 2014 |url-status = live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140114003429/http://www.jardins-familiaux.org/office/eng/eoffer.html | archive-date=14 January 2014 }}</ref>