TRAVEL IN A GARDEN: To answer your questions....Cilia Prenen and Tuin Johannapark, Amsterdam.

From the back door of the house few steps and a brick path lead into a garden in full spring flowering: roses of different colour, size and habit, round pink bushes of spiraeas and the first lacecap hydrangeas. And densely planted among them, there are all those flowers that make the glory of spring, Alchemilla mollis, Geraniums, Astrantias, Tradescantias, campanulas, interspersed with clumps of blue Hostas, soft ferns and chocolate Heucheras. Lost in these colours and scents, I listen to Cilia Prenen, Amsterdam based garden designer 'with dirty fingers', retrace the history of this garden in a sunny morning of June.

She lives here with her family, in the first of the five three-storey houses lined up in Johannapark street in Amsterdam. Their community garden began in 1981, combining the back gardens with a neglected area of the nearby Vondelpark.

Tuin Johannapark, 'tuin' is garden in Dutch, was created little by little. At the beginning, there were above all vegetables, useful, cheap and easy to cultivate, and the design evolved following the needs of the families. She recalls paths wide enough for prams to pass and spaces for the children to play that today are sheltered areas where relax and enjoy the great outdoors. Boxwood clipped in geometric shapes and low hedges create a permanent structure where secluded areas with little tables, chairs and benches are placed among exuberant plantings. Several fruit trees, including a promising fig against a wall, are scattered in the lawn. Its soft, attractive surface gives a sense of unity and freshness to this urban garden bounded by houses and walls. Old trees and hedges partially screen them. The presence of these old trees is even more remarkable considering that this is a waterlogged area, reclaimed from the sea and requiring continuos drainage.
Vegetables are still there. Rows of salad, peas and herbs thrive in ordered beds in the sunny central area of the garden.
Just a few steps from the house.

The visit to her garden was an unexpected gift. Thank you for sharing with us this beautiful garden and your passion and experience!

TravelinaGarden: Tuin Johannapark was originally part of the nearby Vondelpark. It was a working area dedicated to glasshouses and nursery, not open to the public. In 1981, the families living in the houses overlooking this area started to dismantle the unused and abandoned structures and to reclaim and cultivate the plot. Which was your idea for the garden at that time? Which were the main problems?
Cilia Prenen: I didn’t have a structural idea at the moment. Just a dream of an area with flowers, vegetables, fruit and herbs. A dream of a shared garden, I liked that idea. The garden more or less evolved along that line. The main problem was money! As we didn’t know whether we could keep the garden we didn’t want to invest in materials. And we were 35 years younger and poorer... That’s why we started with vegetables, as you only need to invest in packets of seed in that case.

TravelinaGarden: The garden in June is full of colours, shapes and scents. How will the garden evolve in the next months?
Cilia Prenen: Colours, shapes and scents (very important!) will be with us for the whole season. In July and August different varieties of Phloxes will form huge blocks of colours. With clever pruning they will last right into autumn. The biggest change is in the vegetable garden, as that will grow into exuberance (pole beans, zucchini, chards in rainbow colours etc).

TravelinaGarden:Your garden is for you a place to be enjoyed but also where to experiment new plants. Which are your latest discoveries?
Cilia Prenen: I’m searching for drought-resistant plant lately, as even our wet climate is changing with dryer summers. Deep rooting plant are helpful, like Aruncus ‘Horatio’ and the Amsonias. They look good before, during and after flowering, with interesting leaves. Of vital importance! My latest discovery fits in that category as well: Pachyphragma macrophylla. A humble early spring flowerer, white flowers like Cardamine, beginning low to the ground but stretching in their flowering period. Rounded, evergreen (!) leaves. Seeds mildly, and seedlings are always welcome of such a good plant. Stands shade from overhanging trees. Forget about boring Pachysandra, try Pachyphragma instead!

TravelinaGarden:What are your plans for the garden in the near future?
Cilia Prenen: The garden should be more restful to the eye, I sometimes think. So I think of making it greener, less flowery in some parts of it. The middle of the garden will always be abundant, as the other gardeners want that (and me too).

TravelinaGarden: You often work in a urban environment. Which advice would you give to those with a garden or a terrace in the city?
Cilia Prenen: I think it is important that a garden, however tiny, should bring happiness. So plan your garden according to the time you want to garden. Do not make it too complicated, that only brings stress and guilty feelings. The best solution if you are a busy person: plant one tree, if possible. Please. Big or small. It makes all the difference. It connects heaven and earth. Gives you the most beautiful light: sunlight shimmering through leaves. You can sit under it and do nothing. Just be happy.