2025/37 - Open Garden Scheme Groei & Bloei 2

 A month ago I promised you all the 2nd instalment of my visit to some gardens in my area of the Dutch Delta. This time I visited a modern garden in Oostvoorne (on my island of Voorne) and a Japanese style garden on the next island over (Goeree- Overflakkee).

Oostvoorne has one of those idyllic roads that everyone knows by reputation, and then sighs 'oh, I would love to live on that road'. It used to be a sandy road, as sand is the predominant substance around there, it bordering the dunes. It is asphalted now, but still called the Zandweg (Sandy road).

This garden is modern, but at the same time quite traditional, in that it is divided into large square or rectangular beds divided by hard paving. That's the modern bit.

The traditionality lies in the use of old-fashioned plants.

So: modern beds, with traditional plants that thrive in sandy soil. A definite win-win in this garden.

The front garden is green. You immediately feel calmed.

You reach the much larger back garden from the side of the house, through a wooden gate.

The first thing that struck me was that the bricked or paved paths were wide. The second thing was they were immaculate. 

Now, when you follow this blog, you'll know that this style is NOT my personal preference... But here it was very effective, and again very calming.

The lady gardener admitted that this year was a challenging one for her many Hydrangeas; she simply had to water them for the open days, especially the Annabelle. But many of her other plants took the scorching sun in their stride.

There was a pond (I love ponds), only four years old, which was not supposed to be that big, but they got a bit carried away with the digger, she said.

It had a lovely Waterlily (not in view on my photo), but I was mostly captivated by the tall grasses at the far end.

There is something exciting about grasses swaying on the breeze, isn't there?

The water was crystal clear, which is great obviously, but at the same time it enhanced the fact that the plants on the upper shelf were not very large (yet). And that in turn made those rocks around the pond stand out. So, in my opinion this pond still needs some time to fulfil its promise.

The (again very tidy) greenhouse was the latest addition. All in all a visibly cherished and very well maintained garden.

Next we drove across the Haringvlietdam to Goeree, where on the Voorstraat in Stellendam is the Japanese style garden that I was really looking forward to, as it is a style I admire.

The front garden of the house was a surprise, in that there was absolutely nothing Japanese about it, and neither was the side garden. Hm...

But later on the gardener told me that he simply had not got round to that bit yet.

But then I got to the back garden, clucked onto my way by the chickens in the large coop.

 And there it was! The huge back garden, enclosed by old Conifers and fruit trees, and dominated by three large connected ponds.

Love at first sight!

I told you I 'have a thing' about ponds, well, I was not disappointed!

This garden is crammed full of plants.

The first pond (to the left of this path, but see the photo beneath this one) which is fed by the rainwater that flows from the roof is a Waterlily pond chock full of very friendly golden orfe and goldfish. Then it flows into the second pond, which has an Acer island with many different Acers on it, as well as the traditional Japanese lantern. And then into the third pond, which  has a traditional staggered wooden walkway, 'to fool the demons'.

There also is a traditional red bridge connecting the first two ponds.

Just one of the many delights along the path to the teahouse at the back of the garden.

The back of the garden is mostly in shade, so it has Acers, Conifer and Pines as well as a large woodpile fence for insects that feed the many birds that live in this garden. It also has Rhododendrons, but they struggle due to the heavy clay of this garden. They are pampered, but still.

The owner came into a lorryload of leftover slabs, so has made rocky mounds all along the borders of the garden.

The largest rockgarden.

The  parterre next to the house.

 

Would you believe this garden was only wrestled from a mess of brambles and totally overgrown fruit trees four years ago? It is a labour of love, and not finished yet. I was utterly charmed by it, and full of admiration for the hard work. The owner promised it would look even better next Spring, so I promised I would come back then.

And that's it. I hope you enjoyed joining me on my garden tour. If you like this blog, please do follow me. And if you'd like to keep informed of my writing, look up my website on Renée Grashoff Schrijft

Take care, wherever you are.

Renée Grashoff 

2025/36 - Feeling hot, hot, hot!

 And yes, heatwave nr. 3 of 2025 is a fact! This morning I walked Puck at 06.00 a.m. with 18° already, and today it is expected to reach 31°, which is officially bloody hot for the Dutch Delta. That is 87.8 Fahrenheit for you on the other side of the world.

I know, I know, when you live in Mexico or South-West Asia (like many of you lovely readers do), 87.8 is peanuts, all in a normal day. But to us Northern delta dwellers it is the talk of the day. Emergency heat plans are unfolded. Old people in care homes are forbidden to leave the shade and get forcefed ice lollies, I kid you not. And for gardeners like me it means water your pots or suffer the consequences!

The Blackberries, which should be at their best now, are shriveling on the bush. There are not many birds about either, so they don't get eaten either. Such a waste! I pick them though.

My Daylillies are doing well, but I have to admit I water them. That border next to the greenhouse is dry as a desert, they would not survive otherwise.

And this naughty Bindweed is benefiting from the spillover water that drips from the tap when I fill my can.

The Lavatera looks a lot like its wild cousin.

Another plant that takes advantage of spilled water is the Nasturtium. This one is scrambling over a compost heap next to another tap.

And so is the Pumpkin.  They are in a plot which is a bit neglected, but do they mind? Not at all.

Meanwhile I rejoice in my perennial Lathyrus, which does not get watered, but is doing very well now. Mind you, I do deadhead! It is not the mass of flowers which I seek yet, but it will get there next year, it is still young.

The perfection of Scabiosa. As long as I deadhead this, it will keep going for at least another month. The bees love it, as do I.

Totally different location! This is the garden of De Bollaarshoeve, situated on the Bollaarsdijk in Oostvoorne. It is staffed by people with a mental disorder and I go there because their homebaked apple pie is lovely. And obviously because the concept appeals to me. But seriously, that apple pie!

And this garden I stumbled across when I cycled to Oostvoorne with a friend. Their Dahlias are beautiful. As you can see, their soil is very sandy, which is not surprising, as this plot is in the Oostvoorne dunes. 

It gladdens my heart when I see people making an effort to garden. Next weekend it is the next round of the open garden scheme again, and I'll be sure to show you what gardens I visited.

Alright, I'll love you and leave you. Do follow this blog when you like it. And if you want to read more of my musings, click on the link to my website: Renée Grashoff Schrijft A translation button is provided. Bye!

Renée Grashoff 

2025/35 - Oh boy, despite the rain it is still like Timbuktu...

 We have had a week of lower temperatures, a wagonload of wind and some rain. But Hunky Dory is still as dry as a desert. It is a bit disheartening, I must admit.

It made for gorgeous cloudy skies; this is Brielse Meer at sunrise last week. But that rain mostly fell in the North and East of my country and bypassed us. I can't get a spade in my concrete soil. My plants (the Kiwi!) are frazzled. Some have died. My grass has turned to dust.

Mind you, this is the natural state of my drumstick Aliums. I like them even when dried out, very architectural.

But look at this corner...The colour says it all, doesn't it? Parched!

Even the Tansy, which is tough as old boots, is so dry...

So is it all Doom 'n Gloom? Of course not! My darling Desdemona is looking gorgeous next to the Gaura. I deadhead religiously.

And the Zinias are happy behind the Sedum, which is on the cusp of turning rose pink.

The pink bed is doing its best to stay pink, despite being very thirsty. But look at my grass...It is a good thing that I know it will perk up as soon as it has had a lot of water!

The border next to the greenhouse does get watered regularly; it is the only way I can keep my Hydrangeas alive. It is next to the massive Fig Jungle of my never present neighbour,  so when I tend to it, I am in the middle of a cloud of fig perfume. Oh, how I wish I could bottle that scent! So lovely! Mind you, the wasps think so too... So I am careful not to piss them off.

At home, in the balcony garden, I need to keep watering daily, otherwise it is over and done with. The many Pelargonium are fine, but all the more dainty flowering plants are gasping. The Cucumber has not produced a single cucumber! But: not all is lost there either. The Tomatoes are doing reasonably well. The cherry one has kept me in extremely tiny fruit, my Strawberries were larger! But the yellow Zebra one has done very well! The fruit tastes lemony, very fresh. Utterly unsuitable for cooking though, you need to eat them raw.

Aren't they lovely?! 

This is the star of the show at the moment: the Portulaca. I will try to keep it for next year by taking it indoors as soon as the nights turn cold again. Last year I forgot, and it turned to mush at the first frost, silly me.

Okay, time to walk Puck. My rescued doggie is getting old! She has good days and not so good days, and despite being a Curaçao dog, she suffers from the heat. I'll see what day she is having today. This morning was fine, she wanted to chase the street cat (not allowed) and a Blue Heron (not allowed either) and then sulked a bit until it was breakfast time.

Sulking face!

Have a good weekend, wherever you are.

Renée Grashoff 

2025/34 - The Dog Days of 2025

 This part of Dutch Delta Summer is supposed to be the hottest of the season. Typically, we are having a slump in the Summer weather...It is mostly dry over here (not so much in the Eastern part of the Netherlands), but cool and windy.

Keeping myself amused

   I always plan some non-gardening projects for the Summer holidays, as most people I hang out with go on holiday and I am left to my own devices.

   But being a floweraholic, I couldn't help myself! The Nasturtiums in Hunky Dory have shrivelled up during those super hot weeks, but I noticed they are reviving now, the ones in the shade of bushes that is. I decided to paint them on a stool, as a sort of magic spell to help them grow on.

  

  Meanwhile I mowed my grass pathways yesterday. I say grass, but dust is more accurate. The soil is bone dry.

Still, I have confidence that grass will revive. I ended up with dried bits of plant everywhere, at home I even found them in my underclothes.

Wasps

I suspect there is a wasp nest near my plot, as my Fennel was buzzing with wasps. To be honest I am wary of them, but these were so busy feeding they did not take a blind bit of notice of me. There is supposed to be an invasion of Asian 'hoornaars' (hornets) in my country, but as far as I could tell there were none on my Fennel. They are exotics and not welcome. But how can you stop a flying insect from crossing borders?

The bumble bees kept their distance from the wasps and concentrated on the Echinaecea, Scabiosa and Artichokes.

I know they use the Artichoke flowers as hammocks in the night, clever things.

When I had finished mowing, I sat in my chair for a while, just looking at the plants and clouds sailing by. How you can live your entire life without being interested in plant life is beyond me. However stressed I am, the moment I enter the allotments I feel the anxiety levels drop. And by the time I go home, I am completely calm. Sweaty and dirty, but calm.

My chair is hidden behind the Hedera, Solidago and water butt. I can pretend I am in my private jungle there.

To my right is my pitiful frog pond. It resembles more of a meadow at the moment, there is even a wild Carrot growing in the middle. Mind you, I did meet a tiny frog whilst mowing, so perhaps there are frogs in there after all. And the Papyrus seems happy enough.

The yellow Crocosmia is swamped by the Bergamot. It is later than the red Crocosmia, who are spent by now.

The Zinias are doing their best. These ones (in partial shade) look a lot better than the ones in full sun, who are not even in bloom yet.

Sooooo happy with my perennial Lathyrus. After a slow start it is now really climbing up that obelisk, and has almost reached the top.

The other one, white with a pink blush, is out competed by the grapevine. And being in the shade of the Artichokes does not help either. But I'll leave it there, perhaps it will do better next year.

My pink bed looking pink. See that 'grass'? Golly!

How something so tiny can smell so sweet! The Elaeagnus Ebbingei is in bloom, and I swear it is like being in the perfume department of a store. I have said it before, if you are looking for an easy going shrub, pick this one! It even thrives in my conditions.

The bottle is prevention against me poking my eye out.

My Puck is getting old. She has not been able to jump on the bed (90cm high) since last summer. Can you imagine my surprise when she jumped up yesterday? She lay there for hours enjoying herself, and then couldn't get down... I had to lift all 27 kilos of her, and I received her ESP message loud and clear: "for fuck's sake don't drop me!"

I did not.

Okay, this is it for this week. Do follow this blog if you like it, and you can always look me up on my website Renée Grashoff Schrijft

Renée Grashoff