From the Lekdijk near the village of Sluis, you look out over the Achthovense Uiterwaarden. Here, flowery grasslands, willow groves and hawthorn hedges stretch all the way to the river Lek. It is hard to imagine, but ten years ago maize stood here waist-high and maize fields advanced along the river. As a result, characteristic plant species of the stroomdalgrasland threatened to disappear forever. Fortunately, Zuid-Hollands Landschap was able to buy several agricultural plots in the Achthoven floodplains. We are transforming them into nature areas. Already, rare plant species such as red gorse, field sage and broad-leaved daffodil grow there.
The new nature reserve attracts many animals. ...
From the Lekdijk near the village of Sluis, you look out over the Achthovense Uiterwaarden. Here, flowery grasslands, willow groves and hawthorn hedges stretch all the way to the river Lek. It is hard to imagine, but ten years ago maize stood here waist-high and maize fields advanced along the river. As a result, characteristic plant species of the stroomdalgrasland threatened to disappear forever. Fortunately, Zuid-Hollands Landschap was able to buy several agricultural plots in the Achthoven floodplains. We are transforming them into nature areas. Already, rare plant species such as red gorse, field sage and broad-leaved daffodil grow there.
The new nature reserve attracts many animals. Bitterns hide in the reed beds. Wheat fields have been sown especially for seed-eating birds such as finches, chickadees and nuthatches, which are not harvested. You can also see purple herons in the area. These return from their winter stay in Africa in spring. They breed in the nearby Zouweboezem, but regularly search for fish, frogs and small mammals by the ditches and in the wet meadows of the Achthoven floodplain.