Meeting Motion

Research publication

Rush (biezen)

The rush is an originally Dutch crop that thrives in brackish water. In the 16th century, when the Afsluitdijk was not yet there, it grew on the coast of the Zuiderzee and in the tidal area of the Dutch Delta. The crop is particularly suitable for weaving and plaiting mats because of the strength and flexibility of the material. From the 16th century onwards, the rush culture developed in Genemuiden (a former coastal town on the Zuiderzee). Traditionally, it was mainly the nomads living in wagons who mastered the craft.

For generations, Genemuider men and boys went to the swampy coasts of the Zuiderzee at the end of the
summer to harvest the rushes. At half past six in the morning, the rush cutters walked from Genemuiden to the Zwartemeer (a small lake next to the Zuiderzee) and then sailed in a flat-bottomed boat to the rush fields. The men would stand in the water for hours and cut the rushes under water with a snip (a small kind of scythe). The cut rushes were made into bales and the bales were transported to the coast by boat to be spread out and dried. At harvest time, Genemuiden was covered in drying rushes on streets, squares and dikes, they were even drying on the roofs of houses and barns. One could see and smell the rushes everywhere. In winter, they were stored and processed into mats on a loom or by first being braided and sewn together.

The rush industry disappeared around 1960 with the emerging industrialization, the work could not be done with machines and therefore became too expensive. The rushes themselves also slowly disappeared from the landscape when the brackish water of the Zuiderzee became too sweet after the construction of the Afsluitdijk. Imported materials from Asia such as mail leaf and coconut were better suited to machine carpet production and the rush era came to an end.

Harvest

Harvest

Transport

Drying

Drying

Braiding

A plea for rush
The rush is perfect for land reclamation. Sludge settles in rush vegetation, protecting the underlying area against currents and waves. It is also used to prevent salinization, it produces large amounts of humus and gives the soil the necessary airiness and firmness. Rushes make an excellent fodder for
livestock; they contain many more calories than grass and have richer ingredients than corn or lupine.

Phytoplankton//Wandering Plant
The canal surrounding the Kunstfort is leased to a carp breeder. A few carp are released into the water and when the water is chock full after four years, they are caught and sold. The carp, like the bream, is a fish
that churns the bottom, this is called ‘azen’ in Dutch. Because Of this ‘azen’ the phosphates return to the
water column from the soil. With a nutrient-rich bottom and a large carp population, this leads to successful growth of the phytoplankton. Phytoplankton (a combination of the Greek words, φυτόν (phuton) "plant" and πλαγκτός (planktos) "wandering") is plankton that depends on photosynthesis for energy supply. Phytoplankton is the largest primary producer of oxygen on Earth. Together with the stirred up soil particles, this leads to the water becoming cloudy and a decrease in underwater flora.

Canadian Poplar
The Canadian Poplar is a common tree around the forts and on the dikes of the Stelling van Amsterdam. The planting of poplars, among other things, along the fort moat, planted by the army, served as camouflage by allowing the fort to blend in with the surroundings. During mobilization, these trees would be cut down and the wood used. Now the tall trees and dense shrubbery are often a clear indication of the location of the forts.
The straight trunk of the Canada poplar hardly bends under the influence of the wind and does not break easily. This makes it a popular tree for timber harvesting or for planting in coastal areas where they act as windbreaks. The trees are large water evaporators and are therefore often planted in wet areas such as floodplains.

Thanks to Tapijtmuseum Genemuiden and the ecologists of Kunstfort Vijfhuizen