Since 2019, I have been working in the vegetable garden at De Brug, a special education school in Leiden. The garden was established by teacher Mayke de Groot. On each gardening day, two pupils come to garden for half an hour. Activities include sowing, weeding, observing, harvesting, and learning about nature. For many pupils the garden is an oasis where they can unwind. What started as a vegetable garden with just a few raised beds has expanded over the years into a small paradise at the edge of the schoolyard: alongside growing vegetables, an orchard, a sunflower field, edible flowers, berry bushes, and more have been planted. This is our final season, as Mayke is retiring. One last time through the cycle of sowing, weeding, watering, and harvesting—and, above all, enjoying the gardening. This beautiful photo of Senn and Max, taken by city photographer Robert Steenbergen, appeared in the Leidsch Dagblad on May 1, 2026.
