The story of Karijn, Maarten, Bart and Jeroen who keep Botanical Garden Meise magical 

Botanical Garden Meise is a 92-acre estate with more than 18,000 plant species. It takes a lot of hands to maintain it all. Fortunately, the Botanical Garden can count on a punishing team of gardeners who keep the domain magical every day.

You can find Karijn, Maarten, Bart and Jeroen every day among the greenery - outside or in one of the greenhouses. There they are always busy keeping the Botanical Garden in tip-top shape. Each of them is bursting with love for the job. Head gardener Bart has always had a great passion for greenery.  

Bart: "I first worked in private and then self-employed, but ended up working at the Botanical Garden. And that changed everything. I come to work with incredible enthusiasm and dedication. It's a real revelation to be here every day and to be able to build something great with a team of super good gardeners." 

Karijn: "I prefer to just let nature take its course, without much intervention. It mainly teaches you to observe and better understand what plants do. We try on the entire property to disturb the ecosystems as little as possible. Weeds - I prefer to call them wild weeds - like dandelions are the plants that most pollinators gravitate to. So we are not going to actively control it, but choose which plants to remove and which to leave. By being more selective, you create a particularly biodiverse environment."  

Jeroen: "We switched completely to STIHL battery products two years ago. I find them very pleasant to work with. They are better for my back and for the environment. AND they are also quieter, so visitors can enjoy the peace and quiet." 

Maarten: "It is truly a privilege to work in such a beautiful garden. When you cycle through the still empty domain in the morning and the sun peeks through the trees, squirrels walk in front of you, a buzzard hovers above your head, and you see a wild deer running, and your working day has yet to begin ... Yes, at those moments you really feel that you are working in an idyllic place. I always immediately feel like I'm at home here, and not at work."

Jeroen: "One of our biggest challenges is weed control, because we do that without pesticides. That may give us more work, but we want to set an example at Plant Garden Meise. We are going to work as follows:  

Forest mowing first! That way the weeds don't get seeds, and we avoid spreading them. 

Then comes the manual work. A weed whacker is your best friend here. 

Finally, cover the soil with mulch, compost, leaves or chopped wood so that the soil does not lie open. This way you give extra nutrition to the plants. Looser soil is also better for root growth."