Terra Nordica Saxorum

Amateur gardener Dagmar Scheucher puts her heart and soul into her garden. She reveals in advance what visitors can expect on the approximately 7000m²:

"We have lived in the northern Waldviertel for 35 years, which is (not only) known for its cold and long winters and harsh climate, but also for its enormous rock formations. The granite and gneiss highlands are the southern foothills of the once several thousand meter high "Bohemian Massif". The so-called "Litschauer Ländchen" (one of the six nature reserves in the north-western Waldviertel) can still be recognized today by the mighty rock slabs and boulders, the remnants of the old mountains. And it was precisely these old mountains that presented me with enormous challenges around 20 years ago. When I started clearing the old spruce stand piece by piece, I realized that there were bare rocks, slabs of rock and huge boulders under the sparse forest floor. This naturally made the task more difficult. I managed to wrest my garden from the forest and the rocks. First I had to create fertile soil, only then did I decide to start with perennials, shrubs and grasses, before finally planting deciduous trees and fruit trees. Additional areas were created with different conditions, such as wet and dry soils, sunny, light and shady locations. I carefully selected my plants according to their needs and planted them in the right soil in the right locations. As a final requirement, I built raised vegetable beds.

Today, my garden is a park-like, English garden. Bordered and (depending on the season) richly filled beds alternate with wide meadow areas. The vegetable beds, fruit trees and snack corners provide us with seasonal delicacies all year round."