Carduus Gardens

Wonderful to work with, suuuuuper patient with us as we took a while between communicating. Rutger is thoughtful, opinionated in a great way, considerate of our desires and quick with getting changes of the design back to us, with clear consequences or positives of what those changes might mean. We like that he is also cost conscious for the plants themselves, and he shares his knowledge of plants in a garden book that tells you all about the plants he’s chosen, when they flower and how to care for them, in case you prefer higher or lower maintenance. We wanted him to work at his best with his own creative flair so we had a few inspiration photos but we weren’t too set on our ideas until we started exploring the layout. The design is a fair price for his creativity and time. We can’t wait to see the vision come to life.

It was a real pleasure to work with Rutger to create a beautiful plan for our garden. Communicating with him is a pleasure. He keeps his promises, listens, is very knowledgeable about plants and design, and is also a pleasant person. He also has good, realistic ideas. Thanks to his background as a landscape gardener, he understands that the plan must be feasible. We can't wait to see his beautiful, creative design come to fruition! If you're looking for someone who truly designs a garden with passion and enthusiasm, Rutger is the perfect choice. Bart-Jan and Caroline

So happy with our new garden! The design and the process to achieve it were fantastic. Rutger is knowledgeable, asks thorough questions, and listens well. He managed to translate our wishes and taste, combined with his own vision, into a playful, fun, and easily implementable garden design. The included maintenance schedule is a bonus, especially for those with less of a green thumb. It was also great that Rutger visited during the construction phase. He's hands-on and keeps the contractors (Oostveen Tuinen) on their toes without interrupting the process. We wish everyone a Carduus Tuinen design! Thanks, Rutger, we're going to enjoy our garden :-)

Rutger is a very pleasant and enthusiastic person. He transformed our small garden (less than 25m²) into a beautiful place to relax. He listens carefully to our input, translating his ideas into a beautiful design that also incorporates recycled materials. The partners Rutger works with are also very pleasant, highly skilled, and very flexible. We are thrilled with the result and can't wait until the weather permits us to enjoy the garden.

We had a very good experience with Rutger. We had a small tiled city garden (25 to 30 m²) and were able to add a few meters and demolish a shed to make it a bit bigger (30 to 35 m²). In that still small space, we wanted much more greenery, but still room for the children to sit and play. That worked out very well. Based on conversations, Rutger got a good feel for the type of garden we wanted (space for nature, for birds and insects, and not too rigid), even though we ourselves have absolutely no knowledge and/or experience with gardening. A year later, it is an explosion of greenery, with a small pond (and a water feature for the children to play with) and a built-in sandbox that you can easily place things on top of when not in use. The birds and frogs have already found their way to the garden. And where possible, existing materials were reused. It was very nice for us that Rutger collaborates with Oostveen Tuinen (also highly recommended) to handle the landscaping.