The amount of vacant and derelict land in Glasgow is on the increase for the first time in years.

And council bosses are offering them as potential plots for planting and landscaping.

According to a new report, the city has more vacant sites than the rest of Scotland put together.

And this week councillors will be told it is now a problem for a city gearing up for the Commonwealth Games.

The report, from council regeneration chiefs, says: “Many of these sites may have plans for future development, however it can be anywhere from one to over 10 years until development is scheduled to begin.

“These stalled spaces have the potential to become problem areas but also offer a range of opportunities.

“Temporary landscaping can be an innovative solution to deal with vacant, disused sites.

“It is a tried and tested method which can bring environmental, social and economic benefits to both the land owners and land users.”

While the amount of vacant land is growing, so are the number of people on the waiting list for allotments.

The city has 14 council-owned allotments with 676 plots and 10 privately owned sites with 647 plots – a total of 1323 plots.

Two years ago, more than 660 people were on allotment waiting lists with the number believed to have increased since then.

In a bid to solve the problem, the council has identified a member of staff who will assess potential pieces of land which could be transformed and help interested parties keen to do the work.

In a bid to assist green fingered residents, information pages have been posted on the council website called Getting Started, Guide for Land Owners, Legal Agreements, Moving On, How Can We Help and Useful Contacts

The website lists a number of “inspiring examples” of what can be achieved, including Shettleston Community Growing Project, the community garden in Westmorland Street, Govanhill and the Botany Project in Maryhill.

Councillor Alistair Watson, convenor of regeneration and the economy policy development committee, said: “Glasgow has made tremendous efforts in transforming vacant and derelict sites around the city over the past decade but we recognise due to the current financial climate, we are experiencing new challenges with stalled sites.

“These sites can blight the landscape and affect attracting inward investors; therefore we need to tackle this problem in a range of different ways.

“Assigning an officer to be one point of contact for land owners and the local community will help to focus and coordinate the council’s efforts and ensure we can develop environmental and social benefits from temporarily ‘greening’ the sites.”