After a few of us had spent the morning working in the (rather soggy) gardens of Wester-Amstel, we headed to Oud Zuilen on Thursday 18 September for an outing, courtesy of the Friends of Wester-Amstel.
Upon our arrival, we were given a guided tour of Zuylen Castle'sgardens, starting with the kitchen garden. Just like at Wester-Amstel, this area is normally not accessible to the public. Unfortunately, the garden volunteers had just gone home for the day, otherwise we could have exchanged information with them. The kitchen garden has a large greenhouse and very old growing beds. Among other things, we saw beautiful pink kattestaart, small espaliered fruit trees, and green beans. A large part of the kitchen garden’s produce is used in the menu of the museum café.
Photo: There is so much to see!
The castle, which dates back to 1250, was thoroughly remodelled in the mid-18th century and given a neoclassical façade in line with the fashion of the time. This symmetry continues into the adjacent gardens, where the orchards with standard fruit trees are laid out in equal sections, framed by double box hedges. Behind them runs a 120-metre-long serpentine wall. The twists and turns of the wall create a microclimate where heat is retained longer, making it an excellent place for fig trees, for example.
We also picked up some fun facts, such as that the Latin name for lady’s mantle is Alchemilla. Did you know that alchemists once regarded the dewdrops on its leaves as the purest water, which they used to brew elixirs.
After coffee and cake in the coach house, we still had some time to walk through the castle before heading home again. It was a wonderful afternoon!
By: Fleur Poots