Botanical garden and nursery

De Groene prins botanical garden
Banana plants in the botanical garden

De Groene Prins is an exotic plant nursery and botanical garden in the Netherlands. Come and see how beautiful exotics are flourishing in our west-European climate!

Eucalyptus often recovers from severe frost

Ecualyptus-viminalis - very hardy

After last winter’s (2021) severe cold spell, we have seen that a number of species, such as Eucalyptus viminalis (photo) and Eucalyptus dalrympleana can quickly grow back from the top of the root. Simply cut the dead trunk off above that!

Eucalyptus news

Eucalyptus perriniana with early, round leaves

The demand for strong Eucalyptus varieties is increasing all the time. That is why we are working to propagate the strongest trees we have here from our own garden. In collaboration with several other nurseries, the first so called “Hardy Dutch” seedlings are now for sale from July 2023. We can no longer rely on imports from Australia.

On the one hand, the EU is creating trade barriers, making seed imports far too expensive; on the other hand, climate change in Australia is causing a sharp decline in nature. See this alarming article in the Guardian!

hardy oleanders in stock!

Nerium oleander Italia en Atlas
Nerium oleander Italia (L) en Atlas

Nerium oleander ‘Atlas’ and ‘Italia’ will tolerate 15°C of frost, but should be situated in very sunny places in the garden, where exess rainwater will drain off quickly. Winter protection should be applied if medium to severe frosts are anticipated.

No postal sales, max one per client, pot size 11x11x17 cm (2 litre), great quality!

Open day at de Groene Prins

In the weekends of 24 and 25 June 2023, plus 23 and 24 September 2023 we will have an open day for our garden and atelier from 10am to 5pm.
You’re welcome without appointment.
Entry is free

Bottlebrush, Grevillea, Kiwi ..

Bottlebrush at de Groene Prins

Bottlebrush for your garden

Plants for planting out: (Callistemon rigidus) and Grevillea juniperrina. Both suit a Mediterranean garden well! 14 kinds of kiwi berry (Actinidia, hardier than the normal Kiwi) in 5 litre pots: Weiki (♂), Pineapple naya, Bingo, Chang Bai Giant, Dr. Szymanowski, Geneva, Hardy Red, Jumbo, Kokuwa, Lucy, Rogow, Scarlet September and Sentyabrskaya (€ 15)

De Groene Prins on TV

You can get a visual impression of our botanical garden here , in a documentary recently broadcast on the Dutch programme ‘BinnensteBuiten’. So it’s in Dutch, but there’s nice film!

Corona-free garden

The botanical garden of De Groene Prins is virus-free, as are the owners. Groups of more than 5 people are best split up. You are most welcome after a telephone call (06 22370001) so that I can ensure that visitors are spread out, even if I will not shake hands in the coming weeks …

Airpots for a better result

Eucalytpus in airpots

The switch from traditional pots to “airpots” (pots full of holes) is a recent development in arboriculture. Not without reason: tests have shown that root development in airpots is better, with a balanced root system as a result.

Read on ..

Winter camellias

All these beautiful camellias were in flower on 22 January 2020
in the Groene Prins Botanical Garden!

Fresh rare Camellia seeds on offer

Fresh camellia seeds on offer of rare, single flower varieties. Germination guaranteed; they are fresh seeds. They can be sown all year. We keep the seeds cool and don’t allow them to dry out. Soak for 24 hours before planting to aid germination!

Bloei Camellia bij Botanische tuin De Groene Prins

Camellia japonica ‘White Nun’, single white flower, strong variety!

Camellia Berenice Body met enkele roze bloemen bij Botanische tuin De Groene Prins

Camellia japonica ‘Berenice Body’, single light pink flower, very hardy

Camellia Jupiter met enkele rode bloemen bij Botanische tuin De Groene Prins

Camellia japonica ‘Jupiter‘, single red, very hardy

PRICES
10 seeds: €5
25 seeds : €10
50 seeds : €17,50
100 seeds : €30
Shipping at cost price

Massive bamboo shoots

Massive bamboo shoots30 years ago I fell in love with bamboo. I wanted to try bamboo in my garden, started a botanical garden (De Groene Prins) and am still in love with my fascinating bamboo. I have now had a strong bamboo carport for 10 years (of course from my own garden!) And I regularly eat home grown fresh bamboo shoots. Countless species have been planted out in our botanical garden.

Read more about our massive bamboo shoots!

Jubaea, Rhapidophyllum, Butia and Trachycarpus palms have arrived!

Jubaea chilensis in the deGroenePrins botanical garden
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Jubaea chilensis, the strongest of the feather palms, which needs winter protection in our climate, is a great asset to the tropical garden! And we have them in stock! Very good quality. Trunk diameter is 20 cm (8″), pot 30L, price € 145,-
For the more patient among you we also have seedlings …
(Be aware that this rare palm is not suited to beginners! I also have palms which are less demanding ..)

Also available from stock: Rhapidophyllum hystrix, one of the hardiest palms in winter, 70-80 cm (30″), pot 10L, € 55,-

We also have a few varieties of Butia in various sizes. For example, Butia capitata,  and of course various Trachycarpus, such as the wonderful ‘Wensan’ with its circular leaves!

Pallet deliveries abroad

This autumn we sent a packaged Camellia to a client in Budapest. It took 12 days for the parcel to be delivered by the Dutch ‘Postnl’ company. So from now to reduce the risk of accidents to our precious plants we are advising foreign clients to accept deliveries by pallet only!

 

Tropical temperatures!

Young foliage on Eucalyptus perriniana at Nursery De Groene Prins
Eucalyptus perriniana easily grows 2m (6 feet) per year if watered well during the summer

This year’s extreme drought forced us to irrigate abundantly. Many plants in the jungle garden expect generous rainfall in the summer, and if that fails, these plants are forced to rest and therefore loose a lot of leaves.

If you want to plant new plants in the garden during the summer holidays, you must irrigate them regularly! Eucalyptus trees in particular require a lot of water.

Hardy continuously flowering shrub

Dianella-tasmanica at Nursery De Groene Prins
This variety is very strong!

A remarkably strong grevillea which we once brought from Australia is now available; the cuttings have been successful! Price EU 12.50
This species flowers pink-red as long as the temperature permits it. Stock is limited, so one plant per customer is the maximum …

Another new Australian is Dianella tasmanica ‘XXL’, of which finally divisions are available (also 1 per customer). they are seedlings of a remarkably large specimen, the size of a medium-sized Phormium.

New: from now (16 July 2018) seedlings for sale of an interesting cross: Trachycarpus princeps x wagnerianus. Price EU 8.50

Record warmth in May and privacy rules

Butia and Jubaea at Nursery De Groene Prins

The record warmth of last May brings the fact home to us: our climate is getting warmer. This inspired me to once again plant some South American palms in the open ground:

Butia eriospatha and Jubaea chilensis

These strong feathery palms provide an even more tropical effect than the fan palms. They also grow much better in the ground than in a tub! We will protect these with tunnel arches and greenhouse foil. Insulation is achieved with bubble wrap. In a severe frost, a fan heater will keep the temperature around zero degrees.

Privacy rules

We’ve always respected your privacy! See here for more information

 

Palms and rhododendrons

Large Trachycarpus fortunei at Nursery De Groene Prins

We’ve got large Trachycarpus fortunei in stock for just € 285 euro!

And there are great new plants for you to come and have a look at. Our collection of garden palms has been extended with an assortment of 30-140 cm trunked palms! And the rhododendrons are beginning to bloom! It’s really beautiful in the garden now.

Winter’s here!

winter at Nursery De Groene Prins
Half hardy plants like Dicksonia antarctica do need good protection against severe frosts in the winter!

Here we have protected our plants against the winter’s cold. We started with the mountain banana collection. After that the tree ferns and last but not least, the palm trees.

During the winter months we’re open by appointment only(+31-6-22370001)!

Customs damage

plants from Nursery De Groene Prins sometimes arrive damaged
Be careful when exporting or importing plants – customs sometimes destroy plants and call this “inspection”!

Rare plants now available!

We now have the following beauties in stock:

Woodwardia fimbriata, a large fern for sheltered, damp spots
Polypodium ‘Whitley Giant’, a large, good hardy variety of the oak fern (Polypodium vulgare)

The following plants have long proven their hardiness:

Rhododendron macabeanum ,  Blechnum nova-zelandiae ,  Blechnum magellanicum,  Blechnum nudum ,  Astelia nervosa

(Please collect at our botanical garden in Northern Holland as we aren’t able to send plants to you!)

Large Trachycarpus fortunei palm trees now in stock!

Large Trachycarpus fortunei palm treesThe best palm tree for your garden is Trachycarpus fortunei.We’ve got large ones available in pots of 130L with a trunk of around 2m (6 feet) in length! These plants are delivered at an angle (see photo). The price is € 400 (exclusive of transport) but for that price you’ve got an exceptionally beautiful plant in your garden! Small ones are priced from € 5.

Helen’s Hybrid – a promising new banana!

Helen's Hybrid - a promising new banana is tested at Nursery De Groene PrinsHelen’s Hybrid is probably a cross between Musa sikkimensis Red Tiger and Musa Chinichampa.

Seedlings from this happy marriage are all different. Some resemble one parent, some the other, but most resemble both like the plant on this picture. Human children are sometimes faster or smarter than their parents. Also in the plant world, crosses are occasionally more vigorous than both parent plants. The plant shown on this photo grows abnormally fast in the garden, has inherited the beauty of Chinichampa and hopefully the frost resistance of sikkimensis!

Given maximum winter protection this seems to be a promising newcomer in our range of garden bananas. Small numbers of seedlings are available at the botanical garden, each with different characteristics. So they are not tissue-grown bananas (= not from the laboratory)! I can’t yet predict their hardiness for sure. Next year I’ll know more!

The wonderful fragrance of Magnolia grandiflora

The wonderful fragrance of Magnolia grandiflora
Long flowering evergreen Magnolias flourish at de Groene Prins. Their wonderful fragrance is a delightful surprise to many. It’s a mystery why this hardy tree is still not well known.