2025/46 - Heemtuin Rucphen, for herbalists and greenies

 Some weeks ago, I promised you another visit to a garden. And here it is. It is just a taste of the wonderful things you can see in this garden, which is situated in Noord-Brabant.

Noord-Brabant is one of the three provinces of the Netherlands 'below the main rivers', meaning in the South. Compared to my part of the West (built-up industrial) it is green, wooded and quiet. It is also where for six Saturdays in October/November I take a herbalist course with a friend. We go to the Heemtuin (arboretum, but in this case a facility where trees, shrubs and herbs are cultivated for exhibition) Rucphen for this. This garden is built for plants and insects first, and humans second.

The course is very involved, and I don't get a lot of time to take photos, but these ones will give you an idea.

The Heemtuin gives day jobs to challenged people from Roosendaal and surroundings, and is open most days.

I have always been interested in herbal remedies, probably because my body reacts very unpredictably to pharmaceutical ones by giving me either massive headaches or nausea. Besides that, my granny was old enough to remember remedies like onion skins in a warm scarf around your throat, or green cabbage leaves to soothe swollen milk glands.

In the Heemtuin I learn about the use of herbs found in Dutch soil. And it is fascinating! Our teacher very cleverly not only 'sends', a lot, but also gives us a feel, a smell and a taste of the herbs. For instance today she made a soup of narrow leaved Plantain (Plantago lanceolata), and it was absolutely wonderful! To our surprise it tasted of mushrooms.

For homework, we are to make a tincture. I wanted to make a Rosemary one, but my Rosemary at home is not in bloom yet (the one in the Heemtuin is), so I switched to Ginkgo. It takes at least three weeks to get infused enough, but I'll let you know at a later stage if it passed muster.

On our visit to the herbal garden, I took some photos of the wood walls they use in the garden. This one is very bird and hedgehog friendly. But there are numerous walls for insects as well.

I loved this one.

And the heemtuin being in a wood, there are ferns everywhere. I really like ferns, they appeal to the Neanderthal part of me. We call this a Tongvaren (Asplenium scolopendrium), and it used to be rare. But now it spreads more and more, especially near water, on old walls, waterwells, locks, and underneath dripping pipes. And in woody, shady areas.

On top of that wall, I spotted this pretty flower, happily doing its thing.

And against a tree stump a family of toadstools were having a good time.

The trees were really turning now! As there are many Oaks, Beeches and Birches in that part of the country, it was gorgeous.

The Medlar was laden with fruit. To eat they are not so much to my taste, but some people love them. I do think it is a very attractive tree though.

And what do you think of this?! It is the rosette of a plant we call Gele Ratelaar (yellow rattler). The flowers were spent, but this is so cool!

Mistletoe! Very susceptible to air pollution. This looked very healthy though. Not a lover in sight...oh well.

So, you have an idea of the goodies this garden can offer you. I hope to visit it for much longer, and take many more photos, but that will have to wait for another time.

I'll leave you with a moody photo of one of the gates to my town. I am very lucky to live in a pretty part of the island, where all that reminds you of the heavy petrochemical industry just across the river, are the constant noise and sometimes the smell. But when I drive back from Noord-Brabant, the thought creeps up on me that I live in the wrong part of the country. Still, I am too old to move yet again.

Have a lovely weekend, wherever you are. Do look me up on my website: Renée Grashoff Schrijft *

* there is no point to leave me comments like 'nigeria' on my contact page. I only reply to serious questions. Requests for money are totally useless as well; I am permanently skint. If your English is not up to that word, it means I suffer from a permanent lack of funds. Nothing to get from this old lady, folks!

Bye,

Renée Grashoff 

2025/45 - Autumn leaves - pest or perfect?

 This morning I drove home from Hunky Dory, and spotted one of the men in my street trying to use a leafblower on his bit of pavement. This definitely was a case of 'keeping him entertained', as the leaves blew back as soon as he had removed them to the grass verge. In my mind's eye I see a son, thinking "oh hey, let's give the old man a leafblower for his 80th".

There are many very handy garden tools to gift your dad, but a leafblower is totally useless in my country, as it is always windy. Just saying. If you love yours, do so by all means!

Anyway, I happened to be 'busy with leaves' as well this morning. I coppice an apple tree, as it is much too close to my greenhouse, but I don't possess the strength to dig it up. The branches grow nice and sort of straight though, so every October I cut them and put them aside to use as poles for anything and everything.

This is my haul for this year. Whilst I was ripping the leaves off, I thought what a waste, really. Why not build a leaf container? I am always being told how wonderful composted leaf mold is to spread on your borders! 

It is very important that the air can circulate, so I used leftover netting (had no chicken wire). And you should keep the leaves moist, well, ha! It has finally turned sort of normal delta weather, so that means no shortage of moisture.

The lengths of branch I could not use, I put on my woodpile. I know for a fact there is a hedgehog patrolling my garden, and I fantasize that it lives underneath this pile. So every year I top it up. The toads appreciate it too.

My soil is still too rock hard to dig holes for the balcony plants that I have delegated to my garden. But it is slowly getting there! Perhaps in a few days time. On my balcony all planters are on the ground: storm Amy attacked my balcony with gusts up to 100km. Not funny!

They will remain floorbound until April at least! The advantage is twofold: I don't have to worry about storms and they quite like being so close to eachother.

There are more flowers now than at the height of summer! And oh golly, some of my summer bulbs are finally showing blooms! It must be because I moaned about them (not really, it is the fact they have had a week of rain).

Look! At last! The Ixia are all over the garden now, hurray.

And the white Asters are gorgeous.

So are these. It is Aster lateriflorus 'Horizontalis'; the name baffles me, as they are growing vertically. But they are very pretty. Tiny, but pretty.

See those tiny beetles? My one Artichoke which is already sending up fresh shoots, is infested by them.  And they are a mystery to me...Could they be young Aphidecta obliterata? Or young Coccinellidae?

If you know, do tell me.

Now this is an insect that I meet very regularly and know the name of: it is a Pentatomidae, what we call a pyjamaschildwants, or striped shield bug in English. I think the Dutch name much funnier. I have green, brown, red stripey and yellow stripey ones, and they all love my Fennel.

Better late than never...The Cosmos is blooming. The ones on the balcony are spent, but the ones in the garden have finally decided to give it one last go.

Okay, I'll leave you with a glut of Figs.

This drought of a summer has made the Fig Jungle next to my plot explode. Since they are left to rot and fall off, I have taken to picking the ones I can reach. And they taste absolutely lovely. Who would have thought? Ripe figs, in the delta!

If you enjoyed the blog about the Groei & Bloei gardens, you can rest assured: I will be visiting other gardens.

Look me up at Renée Grashoff Schrijft for my other blogs and books, and have a lovely weekend, wherever you are!

Renée Grashoff 

2025 /44 - Absolutely Autumn

 'With a blister on my finger, got a blister on my thumb', to paraphrase Dire Straits. This morning I tackled my dried out Artichokes, and it was hard work. But very satisfying!

What do you miss here? Right! There is a void where the Artichokes used to be. Until this year my habit was to leave them until February/March, and then cut them. But this year that drought killed them off, and the storms blew them over, so I thought away with you. Those stems, as thick as an axe handle, are almost as tough as tree branches, hence the blisters.

I should have removed those unsightly ropes (needed to keep the plants somewhat upright after that storm) before I took the photo, forgot, sorry.

The weather today is pretty good! So the bumblebees were out in force, making the most of it. This huge, chubby one on the Aster was over 2cm, and happy as Punch.

 I met quite a few creatures; a large brown toad scuttled away from me, a blackbird took no notice of me at all whilst using the frog pond to bathe, and one of the resident brown rats took one look at me and then shot under my waterbutt.

The neighbouring Fig Jungle is producing lots of ripe figs. Most of them are too high for me to reach, and get eaten by birds and insects, but some I eat. And they are wonderful! Figs, in the delta...unbelievable. The scent is gorgeous.

My side border is a mix of spent Hydrangeas and very cheery Hebe and Asters. That Hebe is looking blergh all through Summer, but comes into its own in Autumn. I keep telling my plants to keep off the path, but they don't listen...

That Pampus grass, Cortaderia selloana 'Pumila' has turned into a giant! It is over 3 m high. And can you spot my yellow Heliopsis? The only survivor of the five I planted last year. The hanging plant in the white pot is struggling, but I give it a chance with the rains that we are promised by the end of this week. Normally we get enough rain for it to survive without me watering it.

My favourite colour blue. But this Salvia uliginosa has not done well this year. I need to get some fresh plants.

I am very satisfied with this Lathyrus latifolius though! I keep hearing this year was a terrible one for lathyrus, but mine has done quite well. I did water it religiously though, and deadheaded practically every day. It is perennial, so I am already looking forward to next year.

Better late than never...I suppose. The Cosmea were trouble right from the moment of sowing. I was in Rucphen last weekend, and saw entire verges with them, and thought 'What? How?'. Mine were on the cusp of withering away all summer long, despite watering. But they've had more rain in Noord-Brabant. My delta has been the driest area of the entire country, in the second driest year in living memory.

Next to the frog pond are the only summer bulbs that have flowers. I am quite upset: planted 5 different kinds and only these ones have flowered. The rest just produced a mass of leaves. Bummer!

Talking of leaves, this pretty scrambling Houttuynia cordata has removed itself from the planter and is now silently walking along the path towards the frog pond. I let it do its thing, much too pretty to pull it out. And I should cherish those plants that conquer my rock hard clay!

Okay. I have told you about all my climbers against my shadow nook-without-shadow dying on me for three years in a row, right? Well, today I planted a bell Hops. I found it next to my path, and listening to the herb lady wisdom that wild plants come to find you when you need them, I carefully dug it up and planted it in the nook. Fingers crossed that this one will survive, ramble away, and give me my much needed shade in summer! My neighbour says it is a thug, well, bring it on!

I'll leave you with a photo of the clubhouse of the Heemtuin in Rucphen. I am doing a six week medicinal herbs course there on the Saturdays. Beautiful garden, which I hope to be able to actually photograph. 

Have a great weekend, wherever you are, and do take a look at my website if you are in the mood for more blogs at Renée Grashoff Schrijft

 

2025/42 - Open Tuinen Groei & Bloei - 3

 I promised, right? So here is my third visit to the Open Garden Scheme. This time* we went to Melissant and Nieuw-Helvoet. Both small villages; the first on the next island over: Goeree-Overflakkee.

The Uulestee is situated on the outskirts of the village, near the Grevelingenmeer. It is a farm, a real one, so the court where you park is muddy and there is a midden, with residing chickens. My eye was immediately caught by some very attractive goats.

I adore goats, grew up with Nanny goats. So with these ones, I really had to look hard, a breed I had never seen before. Anyway, lovely and friendly animals.

The garden, which was the purpose of this visit, is situated on the other side of the farm buildings. And jolly good, there is a tea garden.

 Finding the entrance to the garden was a bit tricky... it took three goes for me, but then I got it: cross the 'sloot' next to the sheep. And ah...that was not easy for a not very stable-on-the-feet  old woman like myself. So be warned, take a sturdy fellow traveller with you for support. Or a cane.

That sloot has high sides...But the view! More typically 'my side of the Dutch delta' you will not find.

The garden is well worth the effort of scrambling down the muddy side of the sloot, and up the other side. It is inspired by Piet Oudolf, with lots of tall, waving grasses, and I thought it wonderful.

Narrow shell paths lead you through an area planted with waving grasses and masses of tall perennials, most of them in the purple/blue/pink/red spectrum.

Caryopteris, beloved by all kinds of bees, and with a nice scent. I have this shrub in Hunky Dory, but it is still a baby.

* it being the middle of September when I visited, most of the flowers of the Echinops had gone over, but the Verbena bonariensis was still going strong. It made a lovely contrast with the already brown Thistles.

Nieuw-Helvoet

A totally different garden, in my old neck of the woods. I used to walk past this garden, so it was great to finally be able to satisfy my curiosity and have a peek inside. And joy of joys, a huge pond! Very clear water, with a bog area at the back. But the gardener told me that it is not problem-free: the pond has a leak, so he has to fill it up from time to time (hey, where have I heard that before? Oh, right, at home), and the bog garden is silting up and rambling plants colonise it. Still, I thought that pond beautiful.

The entire garden was very attractive. This is a very good example of the shrubbery/trees, this is a very green, leafy garden, with layering. And not an ornamental grass in sight! Except for the pond area, it is mostly shady, because of the high Poplars everywhere. The highest of the entire polder, the owner said proudly. It had one of the loveliest umbrella shaped Mulberry trees I have ever seen, which he prunes by climbing on top of it. That is what you may call a sturdy tree! I forgot to take a photograph, sorry.

I did take one of the tiny Cyclamen though, aren't they sweet?

Here you are, one more. You'd expect Ophelia to dreamily drift by, don't you?

Or the Frog Prince.

This was the last Open Garden garden for this year; I'll make sure to visit some gardens in 2026.

In the meantime I have made a start with building raised beds in my greenhouse. As soon as there is something worthwhile to see there, I'll show you. Hunky Dory is winding down now, and the storm we had this week does not really help. My Artichokes look a fright, but the grasses are looking absolutely fine. That Melissant garden has convinced me to plant some more!

Right. Have a great weekend, wherever you are. Do follow the blog when you like it, and look me up on my website Renée Grashoff Schrijft , won't you? There is a translator button. Oh, and I have news: part 2 of my trilogy about Noor and Agnieken will be in the shops by Spring 2026.

Bye!

Renée Grashoff