By far the busiest, rainiest and most packed with excursions excursion ever!
This year the EILO excursion spanned two full days and we were with around 70 participants from 13 countries. The first day we went to the two largest nurseries in the business and visited Zuidkoop and the NEXT project in Delft. The second day started with our mini symposium, where four speakers enhanced our knowledge about sustainability, maintenance software, the AFAS dome project and LED lighting.
In the afternoon we visited a number of award-winning projects in Amsterdam (Hotel Jakarta and Booking headquarters) and Utrecht (Central Park) but what we will probably remember most is walking through heavy rainfall and thunderstorm through Amsterdam and in-and-out two big train stations.
The excursion was concluded with a wonderful meal in restaurant Woods in Leiden.
Thursday 26 september
Nursery Nieuwkoop, de Kwakel
The excursion started with an inspiring visit to Ñieuwkoop Europe, the largest interior plant nursery in Europe. They divided us in 4 groups and each group got a tour through large parts of this enormous company. We were able to see how the plants come in from South America. We saw how their roots were washed, how the plant itself got washed in a salt bath and then how the plant was put in quarantaine, where it can adjust to our climate and lighting conditions. All to create healthy plants, free from diseases, that are truly ready for their new home.
We also saw the non-plant and logistical part: a huge warehouse, a large pot display, a pot paint spraying workplace and packing and sealing of plants as a constant motor of all Nieuwkoop’s business. Thank you Danny Gerritsen, Jaap Kroon, Marc Bakker – Nieuwkoop, for your warm welcome and showing us around!
Nursery Fachjan, Honselersdijk
Fachjan specialises in being able to deliver truly! big! trees for the most amazing projects and greenhouses. They are a CO2 neutral nursery and supplier, offering a complete range of small, large and very plants, pots and accessories for all kinds of interior planting projects as well as involvement in all stages of the project from the initial project meeting to supervising the planting process.
We were able to have a look around their nursery and impressive greenhouse and be informed of all ins and outs of their involvement in the interior landscaping sector. Thank you Paul Janssen and Fachjan team for another warm welcome and wonderful visit..
Interior Planting Company Zuidkoop, de Lier
Before heading to the first interior landscaping project of the excursion, we stopped at Zuidkoop. This second generation company has a beautiful showroom full of amazing plants. Zuidkoop specialises in indoor greneery, floral art and planting projects for exhibitions and trade fairs. They are involved during the entire process – from design, supply and installation to maintenance.
Dennis Zuidgeest gave some insights into this process and we had a chance to look around the showroom. Thank you!
Next, Delft University, Delft – Zuidkoop natural projects
On the Technical University Campus, Ector Hoogstad Architecten developed this building to accommodate businesses working on technological and sustainable innovations, with a focus on delivering social impact. NEXT is focused on being a healthy and sustainable workspace according to the WELL Building and BREEAM Standards. The building contains 10.000 m2 of offices, event and meeting rooms, makers labs and exhibition space. And lots and lots of fabulous greenery, bringing nature inside. A great space to work.
Thank you to Dennis Zuidgeest for arranging this visit.
Friday 27 september
Nico Wissing, NL Greenlabel
NIco is a renowned exterior and very creative and green horticulturist. Since the beginning of this century he is very active to make his business, and the larger setting around it -the city’s exterior- more and more sustainable. He started with creating passports for everything he planted and constructed, and ended up being one of the founders of NL Greenlabel, a sector wide organisation helping executive companies and suppliers with knowledge and certification and helping the end customer with complying to ever increasing sustainability demands.
Iryna Pakhomova, One Big Green
Interior landscaping – plantscaping so to speak – and especially the maintaining part of it is a business of lots of repetitive jobs, small margins and great room for error and irritation. A business that can win a lot with good software support. One Big Green is developing software that serves the needs of the client, the manager and the service staff. You pay per site per year and everything is of course accessible via an app.
Elwin de Vink, Donkergroen, about the AFAS dome project
We would have loved to visit the AFAS dome during this excursion, but that was not feasible. So, we asked Donkergroen to tell us about it. And from a knowledge perspective, this was even more interesting than an excursion could have offered. Elwin told us everything about the design, the construction, all the issues that arose every step of the way and how these were solved. He also showed a recent drone movie of how the enormous green wall looks now, 4 years after completion.
Bas Hensen, Indoor Green Lighting
There are no more excuses for plants that are in a bad shape because of lack of light. For years interior landscapers struggled with low light situations, and recently also with modern forms of glass that prevent heat coming in. Plants need different light and often also more light than we do. The special led lights from Indoor Green Lighting deliver exactly what plants want. And on top of that: the lights are light-weight, easy to place, not expensive, use very little energy and you do not need much of them.
Hotel Jakarta, Amsterdam – copijn
This is a very special hotel. A hotel with nature and wood at its core, right in the middle of Amsterdam. One feels instantly at home and we were also received very warmly in the cafe with home-made cookies and great coffee, by Suzanne Herremans, Laura Wolf and Maarten Sytsma from Copijn as well as the manager of the hotel. The location of the hotel on ‘Java island’ symbolises its maritime past and this history is included in the design of the hotel and the subtropical garden in the atrium, with hundreds of tropical plants.
We were able to roam freely on the ground floor and have look at the indoor garden from above. Thanks to all involved for an inspiring visit.
BOOKING HEADQUARTERS, amsterdam – KONINKLIJKE GINKELGROEP & MOSS
Without exaggeration this was the cherry on the cake of our excursion. Such a huge and beautiful project! An office where plants are a innate part of the furniture, and not an afterthought. With 11.000 plants, divided over 9 floors, the maintenance team is in fact part of the Booking staff. Bart Dijkman from the Ginkelgroup told us about the technical part of the installation and Nina Sickenga from Moss took us to the ninth floor and told us about the design challenges of the place. Thank you to Maarten van Gestel- Booking for having us. We were all extremely impressed!
Central Park, utrecht – Koninklijke Ginkelgroup & MOSS
Literally at the centre of a huge office building, the lungs of the building were constructed. Glass windows spanned the whole floor, which makes made the ‘garden’ feel like it is floating in the sky. No pots here, but custom-made white border edges, with wooden paths and benches. It felt like we were in a garden, green and comfortable during a grea and stormy afternoon. Thank you again to the team of Koninklijke Ginkel Groep and MOSS for showing us around.
Due to heavy rainfall and storm, unfortunately we had to skip the walk to Wonderwoods. We could see it from the bus though.
Restaurant Woods, Leiden
Our two days ended in restaurant Woods in Leiden. We were all still wet from the stormy afternoon, but the food and drinks were wonderful. An excursion that will not easily be forgotten.
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