Waalgaard

Waalgaard is a self-harvest food forest and vegetable garden on the Scharsestraat in Weurt, in the Rijk van Nijmegen, where members pick their own fruit, nuts, vegetables and herbs every week of the year.

Since 2020 a former pear orchard has been turned into a food forest laid out in rows like an orchard, with trees, shrubs, herbs, ground cover and climbers planted in layers. Because of the wide variety of plants and trees there is no spraying against disease or pests, and the annual vegetables in the market garden next to the food forest are grown unsprayed too. Over a season members can harvest from more than 200 kinds of vegetables, herbs and fruit: mostly leafy greens in spring, plenty from late June into November, then winter crops such as palm cabbage, Brussels sprouts and leeks.

Joining means buying a harvest share (oogstaandeel) for the season running to 9 May 2027. One share lets one person harvest as much as they need each week, on trust, and payment works on a solidarity basis, so you can choose to pay more or less than the base contribution; a six-week trial is also possible. The garden is open to members all year except two weeks at Christmas, from sunrise to 20:00, and newcomers can look around on Saturdays between 10:00 and 15:00.

Waalgaard is run by Coöperatie Arbres, a non-profit cooperative set up to convert farmland to nature-inclusive farming.