COFFEE BREAK

With Wouter Bauman

Just a few steps from the bustle of Schiekade and the railway tracks to Rotterdam Centraal lies a verdant oasis of peace and tranquillity. Here, atop the Schieblock, is an 1,000 m2 rooftop farm. DakAkker is the largest open-air rooftop farm in the Netherlands, and was even the first of its kind in Europe when it was laid out ten years ago by the architectural firm ZUS and the city environmental centre, Rotterdams Milieucentrum. Now, people interested in this form of urban agriculture, architecture and climate adaptation are coming to admire it from far and wide.

The rooftop acreage is used to cultivate fruit, vegetables and edible flowers, as well as raise chickens and keep worms and bees. Wouter Bauman, a nature and public space advisor with the Rotterdams Milieucentrum, is also the rooftop farmer and tends the garden with a passionate team of volunteers. “The volunteers come every Friday, so that’s when we get the real work done”, he says. “In springtime and summer I’m here five or six days a week. Right now, DakAkker is hibernating, so there’s less to do. I mainly go to take care of the chickens. Our volunteers get their eggs.”

Mediterranean Climate

Conditions on the roof are comparable to a Mediterranean climate, with arid, rocky soil and lots of wind and sun. This makes it ideal for growing herbs such as mint, lemon verbena and lavender, alongside root vegetables like Jerusalem artichoke, beetroot, carrots and radish. There are also alliums including onions, leeks and garlic, and strong performers such as raspberry, rhubarb and pumpkin. The harvest is sold on-site. A big favourite are the edible flowers, which they also supply to several local restaurants. “Not only as garnish, also for flavour”, Wouter notes. “They’re great in sauces.”

Another feature are the worm hotels. They produce what’s known as ‘worm tea’, a type of fertilizer that’s used on the roof and also sold under the name ‘Rotterdam Watershit’.

You can score your own at the urban farm shop Stek. Small disclaimer: this tea is not for human consumption. However, your crops and other plants will love it!

Smart Roof

If all this wasn’t impressive enough, the rooftop is also a water capture test site. The ‘smart roof’ retains water using a smart-flow control system regulated by the weather forecast. If heavy downpours are predicted, the system responds by freeing up extra water-retention capacity. This constitutes a major advance in climate adaptation. DakAkker also has an educational programme to teach primary school pupils about urban farming, green rooftops, climate, water, healthy food and bees, which is offered during and after the summer holiday period.

Clearly, this is a roof with many functions. And, if you ask Wouter, it’s a model begging to be applied on a larger scale. “Dutch cities have so many flat roofs, let’s capitalize on that”, he concludes.

If you’d like to see this extraordinary spot for yourself, visitors are more than welcome. DakAkker offers tours for groups of up to thirty people. Proceeds from rooftop produce and tours help support the maintenance and management of DakAkker.