Historical Gardens

Schaep en Burgh, the most northern of the estates in ’s-Graveland, is currently being restored by its owner Natuurmonumenten. The estate, which originated in the 17th century, had been remodeled in 1818 into a landscape garden by architect J. D. Zocher Jr. Natuurmonumenten are now using a map from around 1820 as a guideline for their restoration.¹ The work is the first step of an extensive revitalisation plan by Natuurmonumenten. Apart from Schaep en Burgh, they will also start work on the other 9 estates they own in ’s-Graveland.

The work that has taken place in November and December 2008 focusses on the hook-shaped pond that Zocher designed just behind the house, the so-called ‘Lindenkom’. A photo taken in September 2008 shows how overgrown the area around the pond had become. Views over the pond, originally intended by Zocher, were blocked by undergrowth which was sometimes intentionally planted in the 190 years since the original design was made. A path running along the banks of the pond was barely visible and consequently barely used, I noticed during my visit in September 2008.

This photo made earlier this month shows the current situation. The trees on the island (in the shade on the right side of the picture) are all cleared and replaced by new planting. The banks along large portions of the pond are also cleared. New shrubs are planted and several species of trees replace the cut down trees.² The view at the house, and other important vistas, are open again.
As far as I can tell from my winterly visit, they have overdone the planting of shrubs around the pond a bit. The plan boasts the planting of 1600 plants, but they are planted frightingly close together. In my view, Natuurmonumenten has been a bit too eager to create a ‘voluptuous’ shrubbery in too short a time.

This eagerness may have been insprired by criticism on the work they are doing. In November 2008 objections were raised against the extensive clearing of trees and shrubs in the garden. Apart from the architectural and historical arguments -which in my view speak in favour of this restoration- the critics must not have realised that the abundance of mature beech trees in the garden would have posed a problem of increasing proportions in the near future, as they seem to have reached the point that they fall down without warning already. The work started with the clearing of two beech trees right next to the house, which were suffering major fungus infections. Beech trees have been falling apart in the whole area the past years, like a 260 year old specimen at Gooilust in April 2008 and one just behind the Lindenkom at Schaep en Burgh in the past months (photo), which only appears to have damaged a neighbouring tree in its fall.³

The stump of a recently broken beech tree at Schaep en Burgh, caused by a fungus infection. The ‘Lindenkom’ is visible in the background. Photos by HvdE.

Beech trees (in The Netherlands) have a lifespan of 200-300 years, when they are happy with their designated location. Trees in gardens are not always planted on favourable spots as far as life span is concerned. I believe people who care about parks and gardens -in their neighbourhood or in general- must prepare for a clearing of beech trees on a large scale in the upcoming decades, because they have been used abundantly in early 19th century landscape gardens throughout the country. I just hope they will be replaced with a good idea in mind, either by a modern layout, or a as the result of a restoration or revitalisation plan as is the case here.

1. I have not yet been able to trace that map down, I will post that when I have found it. The map is found in the Wijdemeren archive. Research was done by SB4. [back]
2. Among usual suspects as beech, oak and Populus nigra ‘Italica’, they also planted specimens of the Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera), which seems a bit out of tune. But I’m happy to be surprised by the result. [back]
3. Regional paper Gooi en Eemlander reported on the Gooilust beech tree on 22 April 2008, but the report is not available on their website anymore. [back]

A neighbour who states that the new owner ‘undermines its own guiding principles’; a local council (Wijdemeren) who seems to be surprised by plans to start a ‘care hotel’ (zorghotel) in the main house, and hits back hard at an individual who opposes to the plans; a new owner who teams up with a party that presents future events in past tense.

Who said life was quiet in the Wijdemeren community?¹
Now there is unrest concerning Jagtlust’s future, with fears that new owner Natuurmonumenten is trading in its principles against hard cash and an extension of its hiking path in the area. The Wijdemeren council seems to be surprised by both the plans and the protests.

What’s the story? In 2006 Jagtlust was sold to Natuurmonumenten, whose reputation in the area is good. The preservation of both natural and historical values seems to be in good hands with this organisation. The park was to be partially opened for the public, the seller was going to move into the coach house. Everybody seemed to be pleased with this situation.
A week ago plans for the ‘care hotel’ at Jagtlust were made public by Thuiszorg Gooizorg. At the same time (and conveniently mentioned in the online newspaper article), a website was presented, showing how great life at ‘Zorghotel Residentie Jagtlust‘ was going to be -and why not, they are trying to sell something.
Today that same newspaper reports on the protesting neighbour. He says Natuurmonumenten has been felling age-old trees on behalf of a new hiking path (where they could have easily used the existing paths). If true, this would contradict Natuurmonumenten’s pledge to preserve the historical context of the park, but the organisation stresses that their work is in line with their guiding principles.
The protesting neighbour also suggests that the local council was taken by surprise and points out that the new house of the former owner is flagged as an office area in the zoning plan, which would make living there illegal.

As a response, Wijdemeren wrote a piece on their web newspaper where they say the council has not yet received official requests to amend the current zoning plan, but earlier its mayor and aldermen have advised positively on the plans by Thuiszorg Gooizorg and Natuurmonumenten.² The piece ends with a rather underhand -but maybe unintentional- characterisation of Jagtlust’s neighbour as a professional protester who lost in many cases.

So: it seems there is a lot ado about nothing, yet the way in which this conflict is fought out suggests otherwise.

One thing the local press has not picked up (again): the high-pitched protest may have been initiated by the zorghotel website. In the section called ‘Opening’ reference is made to an opening in June 2008, which was followed by an impressive official opening party in August. All texts in this section are in past tense (it is now the beginning of April 2008, so the events take place at least two months from now).

The story on the zorghotel website is obviously fake. It all looks like a playful joke. But the text leaves the impression that the zorghotel is a fait accompli. And that is not a smart move when you have only just begun to request approval for your plans.
Clumsy operating is not recommended for an organisation as highly dependent on trust as a ‘care hotel’.

In the archives: more stories on Jagtlust and Eikenrode.

Edited @ April 4, 2008 to remove a stupid mistake. Also added the image.

1. Just over a month ago, all resources at the local council were needed to prevent the sudden public sale of Eikenrode in Loosdrecht (which by the way will also house a ‘care hotel’), in which Wijdemeren was and still is an active party. It seems somebody is not paying enough attention over there. See this blog’s archives. [back]
2. Notulen vergadering burgemeester en wethouders d.d. 25 maart 2008, page 3, point 19. The proposals need to comply with all legal aspects of the monumental status the house and park have, and need the stamp of approval of at least two other organisations before they can be approved by the council. [back]

Natuurmonumenten has added a new estate to the cluster of estates they already own in ’s Graveland. In the beginning of December Land en Bosch was acquired. After extensive cleaning operations and preparations, this estate will be added to the public rambling path that Natuurmonumenten already has in the area. Natuurmonumenten has its headquarters in the nearby estate of Schaep en Burg.

Land en Bosch used to be a conference centre for over 50 years, until it closed in 2003. According to an early source the sellers (De Christengemeenschap -Foundation Christian Community, who used Land en Bosch for prayers up till September 2007) wanted the estate to be used as a ‘zorghotel’ -a caring center for the chronically ill. The author believes the new owner may have agreed with this use, but Natuurmonumenten itself does not mention anything about the future use of Land en Bosch. The same source mentions an acquisition price of € 5,000,000 against an asking price of € 5,500,000.

The 3,5 hectare park boasts -by the looks of it- its fair share of mature beeches, as well as an 18th Century cabinet, or theekoepel, which was restored in 1958 by the local council. A photo of that theekoepel can be found here.

Land en Bosch, photo: Ferry Siemensma.

Earlier this month, the first step in the transfer of Beeckestijn to its new owners was finally completed by the transfer of ownership from the Velsen council to the department of DLG.¹ It has taken all parties involved almost 6 months to agree on the terms and conditions under which the transfer takes place. It is now up to DLG and the designated owners (Vereniging Natuurmonumenten, Vereniging Hendrick de Keyser and one private financier) to finalise the full transfer and present the new plans.In early July the new owners stated they would have the plans for Beeckestijn’s future ready and present them at a first exhibition in December 2007. The fact that now only the first step in the process has been finalised is evidence that these talks are more difficult than originally expected.If one looks at the constellation of the new ownership, it is hardly surprising these talks have taken so long. Every party involved at the receiving end of the deal has their own ideas and preferences for the future of the estate. And because the estate is not sold but traded for development areas elsewhere in Velsen, the parties that are giving Beeckestijn away also have a say in its future. The parameters set by the ‘giving’ parties are:

• the estate should remain open to the public (Velsen council).
• the new owners must be able to maintain the estate in a sustainable way for a considerable time (the Province of Noord Holland).
• [there used to be a demand to maintain the unity between house and park, expressed by the Velsen council earlier in the process, but I do not see this anymore]

On the receiving end, the parties involved have already shown they are capable of working together, but their preferences are difficult to combine. They need to find a balance between the ecological relationships between the garden and surrounding area one the one hand, and the simultaneous creation of a museum of gardening on the other, all within the parameters the giving parties have set.No one’s saying this will be easy, but the first step has been made.

1. See for more information on the transfer and the organisations involved here, here and here. [back]

In a predictable turn of events, the arrangements surrounding Beeckestijn have led to questions in parliament (Tweede Kamer). Mrs. Snijder-Hazelhoff, member of parliament for the oppositional liberal party (VVD) and -according to her profile- dairy farmer in the northeastern part of The Netherlands, directed questions to the Minister of Agriculture (Gerda Verburg -CDA) on the legitimacy of the process, and whether other parties (read: market parties) have been considered in the process.

The last point should have been quite clear for someone with only the slightest grasp on the recent history of this estate: just over a year ago plans to sell the estate to a market party were blocked by both local and national politicians. I know we have had Italian-style changes in national and local politics in the past few years, but one would expect that someone would do some reading into a subject, before going public with questions like that.

However, one can see why she questions (pdf-link) the process followed in this case. As a farmer she must have dealt on a regular basis with the ministry of agriculture, and maybe its subsidiary Dienst Landelijke Gebieden (DLG -national service for rural areas) as well, and she might be worried. When local politicians were looking for a solution for Beeckestijn, DLG stepped in with a solution favourable to almost everyone: DLG would be taking over the estate and some surrounding grounds in exchange for areas in DLG’s possesion in Velserbroek, part of Velsen. In addition to that, Velsen would get the opportunity to use these new grounds as a development area, in which way they’d secure a bigger revenue for losing the estate than by just selling it to the highest bidder. In the mean time, Beeckestijn would be ‘passed on’ by DLG to nature preservation society Natuurmonumenten and partners, who declared they wanted to restore and maintain the estate. Everybody happy.

Except for the farmer whose land lies in Velserbroek, within the area given away by DLG as development plot. Continue Reading »

According to a report in Haarlems Dagblad, Beeckestijn will become a centre for garden and landscape architecture. A spokesman of Vereniging Hendrick de Keyser reportedly said as much in a meeting with the Velsen town council last Thursday. Later this year a they will present a plan, together with prospected co-owner Natuurmonumenten. Dutch garden history society Cascade have meanwhile teamed up with the Foundation for a Dutch National Garden Museum (Stichting Nationaal Tuinmuseum). Both organisations have cast an eye on Beeckestijn as a possible location for such a museum.

The Velsen town council is currently preparing a decision on the plan presented by the mayor and aldermen to exchange Beeckestijn against grounds nearby. The meeting of last Thursday must be seen as a step in that process. According to Haarlems Dagblad the council will probably agree with the plan. A decision is expected within a few weeks.

The mayor and aldermen of Velsen yesterday announced that they plan not to sell the estate Beeckestijn. Instead, they will exchange the estate against land currently owned by the National Agency of Rural Areas (Dienst Landelijk Gebied -DLG). DLG is part of the department of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (Ministerie van Landbouw, Natuur en Voedselkwaliteit -LNV). Included in the exchange are the recreational area and some pastures next to the estate. The local council will have to decide on this exchange within the next few weeks. Continue Reading »

We have seen the announcement of two restoration projects in the last month, both in the province of Noord-Holland: Nijenburg (Heiloo) and Duinlust (Overveen).

Duinlust will see a restoration in the spirit of the design by the late nineteenth century architect Petzold, who redesigned the garden around a newly built house in the 1880’s. Current owner of the grounds is Staatsbosbeheer, the house is in use by a company and houses a fitness club and restaurant. The restoration plan is made by the Dutch Foundation for the preservation of privately owned estates (Stichting tot behoud van Particuliere Historische Buitenplaatsen -PHB), and will be realised by Royal Haskoning. More about these plans in later posts.

Nijenburg is owned by nature preservation society Natuurmonumenten. Together with Vereniging Hendrick de Keyser they will spend around € 350,000.00 on the restoration of the house and adjacent buildings, some early nineteenth century landscape features, as well as the restoration of older avenues. Also in the plans is a cleanup around a typical 17th century Dutch garden feature, the Kattenberg. This is a man made hill, often used as an elevated spot from which the surrounding countryside could be enjoyed. In most cases, the soil with which these elevations were made, came from one or more ponds that had to be dug out elsewhere in the garden.

The ‘Kattenberg’ at Nijenburg in September 2008. Photo by HvdE.

The theatre which is situated on the left side of this map (“De Comedie”), goes back to an original early nineteenth century design.

A main attraction at Nijenburg is the strait avenue forming the central axis from the front of the house towards the west: on the longest day, the 21st of June, this avenue provides a clear view at the setting sun.