Baroque garden at the Bratislava castle will join this year of the Weekend of Open Parks and Gardens. (source: Courtesy of National Trust)
Spiders, centipedes, ladybirds, bees, butterflies, lizards, frogs and birds live in parks and gardens. Some see them as ordinary and useless creatures, but the garden ecosystem would not work without them. This year’s Weekend of Open Parks and Gardens, a popular annual event that opens the gates of inaccessible parks and gardens to the general public, will draw attention on them.
“The creepy-crawlies and other creatures living in parks and gardens are often very obscure, but their function is irreplaceable,” said Michaela Kubíková, director of the non-governmental organisation National Trust and the main organiser of the event in Slovakia. “In addition, they are very important for the preservation of biodiversity. In order to keep the gardens alive and full of useful animals, they need to be grown without chemicals.”
Weekend of Open Parks and Gardens
The event will take place on June 1 and 2; Modra will open its gardens on June 15
101 locations across Slovakia will participate in the event, 18 of them in Bratislava
some sites will provide brief info in English while some guides can speak a little English. If more English-speaking people register in advance, organisers may conduct a tour in English or German
the main infopoint will be at Rómer’s House on Zámočnícka Street, the office of the National Trust
admission is voluntary
tickets for lectured thematic tours cost €10 and it is necessary to register online in advance -more information at www.vopz.sk (only in Slovak)
With the help of other enthusiasts, Kubíková organised the first Weekend of Open Parks and Gardens in 2007 as a one-off event to highlight the beauty of parks and gardens, their value, and the need for protection. The event, inspired by similar ones in the UK and the Netherlands, was so successful that they decided to turn it into an annual event.
This year it is taking place for the 11th time, with animals in the garden as its
central theme. As the main event’s coordinator in Europe, the French Culture Ministry chose the topic, with 19 countries participating.
18 sites will open in Bratislava
A total of 101 sites across Slovakia will join the Weekend of Parks and Gardens during the first weekend of June. These are historic parks and gardens, exemplary natural gardens, orchards, green squares, arboretums, as well as beautifully maintained school gardens. They are interesting for their history, garden design and architecture, ecological or active owner’s attitude, the plant collections and extraordinary stories behind them.
In Bratislava, it will be possible to visit 18 sites. Parks and gardens traditionally opened during this event include the garden in Koch Sanatorium with precious coniferous and evergreen trees; the Prüger-Wallner Garden launched by the owners of the Carlton and Savoy hotels; the Liszt Garden behind the University Library; the garden of the Russian Federation Embassy; and the park at the abandoned villa in Jurajov Dvor. Visitors can also visit the garden of the synagogue on Hajduková Street or learn more about the Lourdes Cave close to Calvary.
