The Berlin allotment gardens occupy an area of approx. 2,900 ha, which comes to about 3 percent of the entire city territory. Approx. three quarters of this is the property of the State of Berlin. No comparable major city has such a large number at privately used gardens in the inner-city area.
For allotment gardens, the stipulations of the Federal Allotment Gardens Law (BKleingG) of February 28, 1983 (BGBl. I, p. 2376), as amended by the law of September 19, 2006 (BGBl. I, p. 2146), apply. Since the administration of the state-owned allotment-garden areas is carried out through the borough offices, the Berlin State Government has issued administrative rules that guarantee uniform regulations for allotment gardeners on state-owned plots.
The lease rent for the use of an allotment gardens is calculated per leased square meter plus a proportionate share for the marginal and community areas. The level of the rent, the fees for public services and the residential cottage payment are negotiated as civil-law contracts between the borough administrations or private owners and the allotment-garden borough associations on the basis of the Federal Allotment Garden Law.