Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: tuin

The Chinese Garden - part of the Hortus Botanicus Haren was built in 1995 after an earlier visit of a Groningen trade mission to several cities in China. It is a historical reconstruction of a garden from the Ming period. The walled garden was designed a famous Chinese urban garden architect from Shaghai. Almost all the material used to build the Chinese Garden was shipped from China to the Netherlands, from the stones in the garden and the wood of the pavilions to the furniture of tea house. Chinese workers laid out the park largely by hand. The result of this cooperation between the Netherlands and Shanghai is the beautiful Chinese garden “The Hidden Kingdom of Ming”, which was officially opened by H.M. Queen Beatrix in 1995.

The Hortus Botanicus in Haren is one of the oldest and largest botanical gardens in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1626 by the pharmacist and botanist Henricus Munting and was originally situated in the city of Groningen. Because of space considerations it relocated to its current location; from 1929 on a new botanical graden was created on that site and became the largest botanical garden in the country. At the Hortus, which covers about 20 acres, there are a large number of very different gardens. Among others the garden consists of an arboretum, pinetum, English garden, a water garden, a rock garden, bamboo garden, a grass garden, agricultural gardens, and Celtic gardens. Since 1995 it also has a walled Chinese Garden . The Hortus was part of the University of Groningen and until the 1980s’ played an important role in the teaching and research of biology especially. Since 2002 a foundation is managing the gardens. We visited the Hortus in late October, so there were almost no flowers to be seen. We just could make a walk along trees and shrubs in beautiful autumn colours.

Kasteel Twickel (twickel Castle) is well-known for its gardens and park. The gardens have been developed by the various generations and give a good impression of the history since the Renaissance. The formal garden offers clipped figures of the taxus and buxus trees. The ornamental garden garden in Victorian style has been designed by the last baroness. The surrounding park - with its large water gardens - are developed in English landscape style during the 18th and 19th century. The park has also a wildlife sanctuary with a pack of fallow deer. The orangery was built in the first half of the 19th century. It serves as a winter residence for the (sub)tropical plants, such as the 300 year old orange trees.

Kasteel Geldrop (Geldrop Castle) - dating back to the year of 1350 - is located right in the center of Geldrop. The former vegetable garden and orchard was laid out around 1870 by Hubertus Paulus Hoevenaar jr., operator of sugar factories in the East Indies. In 2002, this vegetable garden was transformed into the Bloemenhof , a stunning garden, which is full of blooming flowers in summer, when the borders are filled with exuberant plant combinations, such as old shrub roses, grasses and cut flowers.

The Kruisherenklooster (Monastery of the Crosiers, formally known as the Canons Regular of the Order of the Holy Cross) in Sint Agatha is dating back to 1315. In that year there was already a chapel dedicated to St. Agatha. Around 1371, some monks came to live near the chapel to attend it. The monastery of the Order of the Holy Cross arose from this little chapel. The monastery is still in use and is therefore the oldest monastery in the Netherlands still inhabited by clergy. From the 18th century onwards, the monastic garden was laid out. It is enclosed by a wall. It contains orchards, vegetable gardens and fish ponds, while until 1985 farm buildings were also located within the garden. A number of Crosiers practised gardening. The garden is also a reminder of religious matters. The boxwood hedges are cut in shapes like a cross on a globe, a snake, a ship and so on. The garden has an area of 2.5 ha and offers, apart from a lot of nice and colourful flowers, also a number of monumental trees, such as a 150-year-old tulip tree, a red and a green beech and an old oak. The monks were self-sufficient and for centuries lived largely off the proceeds of the land: a vegetable garden, fruit trees, fish ponds, chicken coops and beehives.

The gardens of the Muiderslot (Muiden Castle) are located next to the castle and are often 'forgotten' by visitors. I can recommend to take a look in the gardens; a lovely place to enjoy and relax. The gardens of Muiderslot were first designed and created in the 17th century: to enjoy, to show off and to eat out. In that era it was always practical and necessary to have vegetables, herbs and fruit nearby. A berceau (beech alley) divides the garden into two sections. Windows have been made into the hedges, allowing a look into the garden rooms. The ‘green tunnel’ allowed the lord of the castle and his guests to stroll in the shade. The garden layout with its sober lines, shaped hedges, trees and rare plants served to impress many a guest. The vegetable garden ( Warmoeshof ) still offers (forgotten) vegetables. It was the best way to ensure a steady food supply since Muiderslot was far away from the markets. In the herb garden ( Kruidhof ) kitchen, medicinal, and ornamental herbs are grown. The medicinal herbs supplied the castle pharmacy.

Paleis Het Loo (Het Loo Palace) was built in 1686 for stadtholder Willem III and his wife queen Mary of England. The palace was the summer residence of the Dutch stadtholders, kings and queens from 1686 to 1975. Princess Margriet last inhabited parts of the palace. Het Loo was planned and created as a combination of a palace and baroque garden. This garden - designed by Claude Desgotz - was more than a royal hobby; it was a symbol for the position and power of the royal couple. All elements in the garden, such as the garden statues and the fountains, fit within this symbolic meaning. Flowers and plants play are important elements in the gardens of Paleis Het Loo . In the 17th century, a garden with exotic - and therefore expensive - flowers and plants meant that the owner had the wealth and contacts to have such a garden laid out and maintained. In the 18th century the baroque garden was replaced by an English landscape garden. However, the original gardens were restored from 1980 to 1984, when the palace and gardens became a national museum. The starting point was preserved design drawings, as well as excavations on site. Some of the plants at Het Loo change every year, both in the spring and in the summer. The aim is to achieve the most accurate possible reconstruction of the original garden. (During our last visit the garden was decorated with four monumental contemporary art works - 'The Garden of Earthly Worries’ - designed by the Polish-American architect Daniel Libeskind. It is the first time that contemporary art is on show in the garden of Paleis Het Loo .)

Pictures of flowers taken during a ‘corona-stroll’ in my garden.

Kasteel Rosendael (Rosendael Castle) is a medieval castle built in a valley at the edge of the hills of the Posbank . The castle was surrounded by water, making it difficult for the enemy to enter and the residents immediately had sufficient fresh drinking water. Often it looked as if the residents of Rosendael used more money for the garden than for the castle itself. Around 1670 the noble family Van Arnhem had built waterfalls, caves, ponds and fountains. Trends changed and when the Torck family lived on Rosendael, the 'old-fashioned' garden was modernized by architect Daniel Marot. Several parts from that period (around 1730) are still preserved: the unusual shell gallery, a teahouse, a grotto, a chain bridge and the marble waterfall. One of the most well known parts of the garden are the so called Bedriegertjes . These ‘tricksters’ are mini fountains, hidden in a cascade’s mosaic floor which turn on and off unexpectedly and spray the surprised visitors with water. It was a popular destination for school trips well into the 20th century.

Twickel Castle ( www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/48898228 ) is well-known for its garden and park. The landscaping of the gardens has been created over many generations and gives an impression of the history of the garden since the renaissance. Next to the castle there is a garden in the French neo-baroque style (PiP1) with clipped figures of the taxus and buxus trees. The historical orangery (PiP1) dates, in its current form, to the first half of the 19th century and serves as a winter shelter for many tropical and subtropical plants, including some 300-year-old orange trees. The so called 'rock garden' (main picture and PiP2) in Victorian style has been designed by Baroness van Heeckeren Van Wassenaer. The surrounding park, with its large water gardens (PiP3), was developed in English landscape style during the 18th and 19th century. The park has also a wildlife sanctuary (PiP4) with a pack of fallow deer.

I don’t know if Ampies Berg (Ampies Mountain) is the most beautiful garden, but for sure it is the most remarkable one I have ever seen. As soon as I entered the garden I was overwhelmed by the explosion of colours of hundreds and hundreds of different flowers and plants. It is a long time ago when Ampie and Batje Bouw during a holiday were inspired by the Austrian landscape. At home he decided to make a piece of Austria is his own garden with waterfall, a pond, beautiful flowers and a mountain with a height of fifteen meters. They have been working for more than fifty years creating their own floral paradise.

The Real Alcázar Palace has the largest late-medieval garden in Europe, offering one of the most beautiful examples of royal Spanish palace grounds. The garden is an original representation of the typical Mudéjar style, a Muslim artistic expression adapted by the Christian world. Glazed and unglazed tiles and many features, like water channels, glittering pools, fountains and water spouts give this green oasis a special character. During the 16th century - when Seville was the richest city in Spain - changes were made. The old garden spaces survived, but Charles V's designers were influenced by Renaissance styles when making a large labyrinth and a fine pavilion. A new garden was made in the early 20th century. Nowadays the large garden area is divided into several separate parts in all kinds of styles, like French, Italian and Arabic. The garden of Real Alcázar has more than 170 different species of plants and trees, like palm, cypress, myrtle, mulberries, magnolia, orange, almond and lemon trees.