‘Together we take good care of the landscape’

On the water-rich Biljoen Estate, between the Veluwe and IJssel rivers, farmer Wilco has just taken his cows to pasture when Wim walks into the yard of his organic dairy farm in Velp. ‘Wim is one of the many invaluable volunteers who help us regularly’ says Wilco. ‘I lease 60 hectares of land from the Gelders Landschap and together we take good care of a beautiful landscape, which society also enjoys. This cooperation with enthusiastic people from the area is invaluable. We cannot do without it! Today we are going to work in the floodplains pruning willow branches. We will then use these later to create branch rills.’

‘First we prune the willows and stack the branches between poles,’ Wilco explains. ‘’Such a branch rill is very attractive to birds, who seek protection there and like to make nests in it. And in winter, you can see all kinds of holes in the wood. These holes are made by all kinds of small animals, which therefore have a safe hiding place. This contributes to biodiversity! Butterflies and insects also find a nice spot here. Just like caterpillars. They crawl around safely in the hedge and can warm up in the sun when spring comes. Then you get butterflies much earlier in the season.’

‘So we have many more plans that we will take up together with Wilco and other volunteers’ says Wim. ‘For example, we also want to build a feeding hedge. We came up with that idea together with Wilco and other volunteers.’ Wilco: ‘The roots of the shrubs in the forage hedge absorb minerals, which you only find in the deeper layers of the soil. One of those minerals is selenium. When the cows eat the leaves and twigs from the hedge, they also get some of that. That in turn contributes to good nutrition and, nice and handy, I don't have to prune the branches anymore!’

On his Facebook page for local news, Wim regularly shares Wilco's farm plans. Wilco: ‘Wim also invites volunteers on his social media. That way you create interaction between the farm and people in the area. We also organise educational events. The other day, 182 people watched a film in our barn about the connection between agriculture and nature. Great fun, right?’ School classes also regularly visit the farm to experience how farming and nature are connected. ‘By connecting with the community, people can discover for themselves that working on a farm is above all working together.’

Late last year, together with the volunteers, we planted a tall-stemmed orchard, where we will soon be able to pick apples, pears, cherries and plums. Wilco: ‘That's tasty for us, but for the bees, tasty and healthy food is also important. That's why we will soon be planting a bee grove, a kind of mini forest of about 10 metres long.’ ‘It will contain shrubs and small trees, which bloom in periods when the fruit trees are not blooming’ Wim explains. Wilco: ‘When the wild bees can't find nectar in the blossoms of the orchard, they still have food. Bumblebees, butterflies and other insects naturally also know how to find such a bee forest.’

Wilco also looks to the future. ‘Hopefully we can keep farming this way, with our volunteers as an indispensable link. That's good for biodiversity, dressing up the landscape and the relationship with society. The cooperation between nature and agriculture is really important, we would like to put energy into that. Through a strong link between the farmer and the local community, you learn to appreciate each other. We listen to the desires of people, who in turn think along with us and spontaneously come to help. That interaction is really worth its weight in gold!’