Allotment gardens in Stockholm – green cultural history in Södermalm 🌱Did you know that there are over 1000

Did you know that there are over 10,000 allotment gardens in Stockholm – and that some of the oldest are located in the middle of Södermalm? Join us on a city walk among allotment gardens, parks and human destinies – from Zinkensdamm's allotment area to Tantoberget – and hear about struggling women, secret tobacco cultivation, latrine barrels as fertilizer, and how gardens saved the health of the city's inhabitants.

At the end of the 19th century, Tantolunden was a garbage-filled hill. But visionaries like Alfred Medin designed romantic promenade parks with winding paths, gazebos and flowering bushes. In winter, the slopes became ski slopes for the children. Here was also the open-air theater where Julia Caesar played "Söderkåkar" in front of thousands of spectators.

In the early 20th century, Stockholm was crowded and unhealthy. Tuberculosis claimed lives, and children played in yards without greenery. But in Germany an idea was born: small cultivation plots for working-class families. With the help of Anna Lindhagen, a stubborn social reformer from Östermalm, the allotment movement spread to Stockholm. In 1906, the first area was established in Söder: Eriksdalslunden.

Anna Lindhagen fought not only for gardens, but also for women's suffrage, childcare and the protection of Stockholm's older buildings. Her book Koloniträdgårdar och planterade gårdar from 1905 is still a beautiful tribute to the great importance of the small plot:

"On weekday evenings and Sundays, the allotment garden becomes a dear refuge..."

In the past, people not only grew carrots in Tanto – but also tobacco. During the 18th and 19th centuries, Södermalm was the center of the Swedish tobacco industry. Here, cigars were rolled by women in factories, and on the slopes grew leaves that were flavored with honey, wine and herbs. Smuggling, tobacco sauce and clay pipes were everyday life.

And then we meet Miss Arona, Europe's strongest woman, and her son Ramon, stuntman in Pippi Longstocking and cowboy at High Chaparral. Their allotment cottage still stands today in Tanto Mindre.

Kolonisterna har inte bara odlat – de har också kämpat. På 1970-talet ville staden bygga på flera av områdena. Men med list, folkopinion och kärlek till jorden lyckades odlarna rädda sina lotter. Idag finns över 150 koloniområden i Stockholm – med nyblivna stadsodlare, veteraner med gröna fingrar och en gemenskap som överlevt både krig, bostadskriser och rivningsvågor.

Nu i maj startar jag mina vandringar bland koloniträdgårdar i Stockholm igen. Vi går i lugnt tempo från Zinkensdamms koloniområde till Tantoberget, och bland annat via Tanto Norra, Molitor och Eriksdalslunden.

Book your spot now – limited number of participants!
You can find dates and times via the green guide's website or the link in bio if you follow me on social media.

🌿 Welcome to a city walk among Stockholm's green spaces – full of scent, history and vitality.
/Stefan – the green guide