アールテルの天然記念物・トップ18

Beautiful walking area, not greasy even after heavy rain (some places were greasy, but easy to avoid).

The herb garden is located at the rear of the castle, opposite the entrance to the visitor center. It is accessible via the stairs or the ramp next to the restrooms. This unique herb garden is open to the public from sunrise to sunset. (Province of West Flanders)

Not accessible only on Heritage Day.

As #Els wrote earlier: the vast majority of the forest is still quite young. It is therefore noticeable that there are still many young trees and 'lots' of planting have been marked. Already a charming forest, but it promises that it will only become more beautiful and valuable in the coming decades. Tip: With the Baliekouter in Wakken just a stone's throw away, you can make a beautiful loop between two beautiful pieces of nature.

The Ganzeveld is a 33 hectare nature reserve in Aalter (Belgian province of East Flanders). The mosaic landscape in the south of the Bulskampveld consists of forests (28 hectares), old beech avenues and a number of open meadows (5 hectares). The nature reserve has been managed by Natuurpunt since 2012. Additional forest was planted in November 2019. In the Ganzeveld, typical species of nutrient-poor forests (with pedunculate oak, silver birch and planted American oak), such as holly, wild honeysuckle, common heather and broom, flourish. Spork, rowan, strawberry and pill sedge grow in the herbaceous layer. Deer, squirrel, buzzard, nuthatch and black woodpecker live in the Ganzeveld. A 2 kilometer long signposted path runs through the Ganzeveld. Source: Wikipedia

Small and only a forest managed by Natuurpunt for over ten years with rich vegetation. A limited zone is being cleared to further increase biodiversity through heathland restoration. The walking loop through the forest has been baptized "The Woodpecker Route". The Ganzenveld is also the birthplace of Aalter.

There used to be a hof van plaisance (country house) here, which was depicted in 1755 in the middle of a park, which even contained an amphitheater. In 1894 the castle was rebuilt according to a design by Achille Marchand. The park was laid out in the English landscape style at the end of the 19th century. A pond, an ice cellar with a pavilion above it have been built. There are also bridges, a boathouse and a cave. There are three monumental chestnut trees, including possibly the thickest chestnut tree in Belgium. The castle was built in an eclectic style and made of brick and bluestone. The hall is decorated with sgraffito. In addition to the castle, there is a staff house with stables and a coach house with horse stables. These buildings also date from 1894. (according to Wikipedia)

You will find around 400 species here. When the herb garden at the castle was created, the aim was to create the most complete collection of herbs possible, for various uses. The herbs are grouped: Medicinal herbs The largest group in the herb garden, with traditionally known medicinal plants and more recently used species. The native species are listed according to their growing location. For example, you will find the marsh and water plants in or around the pond. Culinary herbs Discover commonly used and lesser-known species, in addition to food crops such as artichoke and asparagus. Industrial crops Less numerous. Often on larger plots, to give a better impression of the former cultivation method. The fibre plants, oil plants and dye plants are grouped as much as possible. Please note that some (medicinal) herbs are poisonous! This is one of the reasons why you are not allowed to pick any plants.