Prisca Visser is a photographer with a love of the outdoors and nature. For the Biesbosch Line she regularly goes out to capture stories. This time she discovers the picking and harvesting gardens in the Biesbosch Line.
Prisca Visser is a photographer with a love of the outdoors and nature. For the Biesbosch Line she regularly goes out to capture stories. This time she discovers the picking and harvesting gardens in the Biesbosch Line.
After the long days of July comes the month of August. The harvest month when the plums fall ripe from the tree and the first dahlias bloom. It is enjoyable to bring in the harvest of hard work. Should you not have a piece of land to grow on, there are plenty of places in the Biesbosch Line where you can harvest your own! From picking gardens to harvest gardens, I list four for you.
You quickly drive by, so beautifully hidden is this garden. As I cycle down the long path, I see just how spacious the Waardhuizen picking garden is. Flowering plants are arranged in neat rows on both sides of the path. I can park my bicycle at the parking lot, where there is also plenty of room to park my car. A sign tells me how things are done here. There are pruning shears and rubber bands to tie your bouquet together.
I met with the owners. A nice, fresh couple who have put their heart and soul into this garden. Zeger has experience growing flowers and opened his picking garden a few years ago. "It's nice to let people share in my passion" he says. This year was challenging though with all the snails, but there is plenty for everyone to pick. Marjolein helps where she can and provides entertaining updates on social media. I'm short of eyes here, dahlias, snapdragons, pink phlox and hypericum. An explosion of colors!
After picking, you can enjoy a cup of coffee, tea or soda at the large table. From this spot you have a wonderful overview of the entire garden.
Address: Waardhuizen 32
Find more information and contact on their Instagram account.
A garden where you can pick fruits and vegetables every week. Fresh from the garden, right on your plate! It doesn't get any more local and tasty. Hof van Heden Harvest Garden is located on the outskirts of Almkerk. Many residents of this village now know how to find the garden. Owners Ben and Anika started the garden because they like to grow locally in a natural way. What you harvest is therefore grown without the use of pesticides! Harvesting your vegetables with your own hands gives you more of a connection to nature and that is exactly what Ben and Anika have in mind.
I walk around the garden, that alone is beautiful. It is peaceful and calm, barn swallows skim low over the garden in search of insects. In this harvest month, beets, zucchini, string beans, spring onion, kohlrabi, cucumbers and more can be harvested. The first tomatoes are also ripe; still warm from the sun, they are at their tastiest! Self-harvesting in the Hof van Heden garden is only possible with a subscription. Would you still like to enjoy the rich harvest? At the entrance is a nice little stall, which I wrote about before on this bicycle tour through Altena. Here you'll find baskets full of zucchini, endive and tomatoes. Pay easily with a code or cash in a jar.
Address: the garden to the left of Emmikshovenseweg 6, Almkerk
More information about visiting and a picking subscription can be found on the website.
Another joy maker in the region is Pluk Vrolijk. In this garden you can pick a beautiful bouquet, but also enjoy a delicious high tea or picnic! I've been following owner Willeke on Instagram for a while now, it's nice to finally see her garden in real life. We take a seat at one of the picnic tables between the fruit trees. Because there are! "In spring, people can already picnic here among the blossoms" Willeke explains. "Now the whole field is in bloom and it is wonderful to enjoy tasty snacks there".
The picking section of the garden is indeed full of flowers calling out to be picked. Soft hues rival the harsher colors of the cosmea. Several seating areas are set up at the edge of the garden. Chairs that you can sink into delightfully with countless cushions around them form an idyllic picture. All the sweets served are made by Willeke herself in her kitchen. Scones, cakes, stuffed strawberries and macarons, she does not shy away from them.
Does a Dutch shower come over during your high tea? Willeke and her husband have found a solution to that. Recently there is a shed in the garden that they refurbished together. Inside, the cozy seating area is ready and you can still enjoy the outdoors through the French doors. Like the seating in the garden, you can expect fine styling here. After enjoying tea with a cake, you get scissors to pick a nice bouquet for home.
Address: parking lot at the Boompjes, Almkerk
Contact and updates on special evenings can be found on her Instagram account.
Fennel, pumpkins, chard, you can also go to Kraaiveld 's Heeren Loo for harvest fresh from the garden. I met with Leo who is in charge of maintenance. Perhaps you know the estate's farm store, and have enjoyed a cup of coffee there on the terrace.
On the west side is a vast garden with straight strips of plowed soil. Together with Leo, I walk a lap along the vegetable beds. "We do everything organically" Leo explains a touch proudly. "That's why when you buy vegetables or fruit from us, you know it's unsprayed." Together with a group of people from the day care program, they work hard every day to sow, repot and plant out. Two long arc greenhouses serve in the spring to let the seeds germinate, now they are mostly full of tomato plants."
In a few containers, the small cuttings of winter vegetables, such as kale, are already at the ready. "That way we can get vegetables from the garden all year round," Leo continues. On the way back, he quickly picks some pumpkins from the plant. Fresh harvest is available in the farm store. Would you like to come and harvest your own vegetables from the garden every week? Then you can also take out a subscription here!
Address: Roef 4, Woudrichem
Garden updates can be found on the facebook page of farm store Kraaiveld 's Heeren Loo.
After a tour of these beautiful gardens, it is clear to me that there is plenty of opportunity in Altena to harvest for yourself! Every garden is different and has its own charm. Whether you want to buy fruits and vegetables or brighten up your home or caravan, there is something for everyone. For gifts, too, these are great places to find something. A hand-picked bouquet makes any birthday special and a jar of jam is easily given. It is also a great souvenir for home, such a local product!
Like Prisca, would you like to visit the picking gardens in the Biesbosch Line? Below are all the links.
- Instagram picking garden Waardhuizen
- Hof van Heden website
- Instagram Pluk Vrolijk Almkerk
- Facebook page farm store Kraaiveld
Text and photos: www.priscavisser.nl. Here you will find all of Prisca's blogs.