It’s not just Solothurn that focuses on gravel deserts: away with the “Gardens of Horror”!

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The German biologist Ulf Soltau calls the gravel deserts on our doorstep ‘Gardens of Horror’. He collects photos of them on an Instagram account with more than 95,000 followers. That’s ‘garden satire’.

The canton of Solothurn now wants to take action against the horrors. In the future, it will no longer be allowed to create new rock gardens unless they are filled with greenery. The cantonal parliament decided this on Monday.

Solothurn is the first canton to adopt such a ban. So far, there are only a few communities where creating new rock gardens is prohibited.

Communities against popular gravel

Langendorf SO has made progress: since 2020, rock gardens that do not provide any ecological benefit have been banned there. The building authorities have not yet had to intervene: “The ban is accepted in the community,” says Urs Zaugg (49), Langendorf’s building manager. The pioneering role may have helped, says Zaugg. When the community meeting approved the revised building regulations, there were no large rock gardens in the village of almost 4,000 residents.

Elsewhere, gravel deserts are becoming increasingly popular. Between 2018 and 2021, the area of ​​gravel gardens across Switzerland increased by 21 percent, a federal report shows. Rock gardens are especially popular in urban areas and rural areas.

This is usually not an aesthetic preference. Gravel areas are probably particularly popular because they require less maintenance, says Ronald Aeschlimann (45), head of construction and planning at the municipal council of Steffisburg BE.

Environmentally harmful gravel garden

Since April 2023, new gravel gardens have also been banned in the Bernese community. The main reason: according to Aeschlimann, the gardens are harmful to biodiversity and the environment. The Federal Council has also already dealt with the gravel garden, which is an environmental sinner. In a report he lists what makes the “Gardens of Horror” so gruesome.

Because there is a separating layer of fleece or plastic under the gravel or gravel, the natural functions of the soil are limited. The lack of soil aeration also has a negative effect on earthworms and fungi. In addition, gravel surfaces do not provide a habitat for insects and small mammals.

A gravel garden also becomes a heat island in the summer. The scorching sun can heat the stony desert up to 50 degrees, which lives up to its name.

Bans also apply to our northern neighbors

The Federal Council leaves it to the municipalities and cantons to limit the construction of gravel gardens. After Solothurn, another canton, the Jura, could soon follow: the government has announced a ban on rock and gravel gardens. However, a parliamentary decision is still pending.

In Germany too, it is not only the biologist and Instagram star Soltau who is concerned about the gravel deserts. The German state of North Rhine-Westphalia tightened regulations at the beginning of this year: homeowners may even be obliged to dismantle gravel gardens. And even artificial grass is taboo.

Do you have a gravel garden with you? Send us a photo of it here!

Source:Blick