The North Limburg soil and its use in the present, past and future is central to the exhibition. The exhibition ‘The earth – soil on which we live’ has been realised in the earth, namely the asparagus tunnel of the museum.
In North Limburg, the poor sandy soil determined the daily life of the residents for a long time. Everyone tried to live off the produce of the land. Vegetables from the garden and livestock provided the meagre means to survive. ‘The earth – soil on which we live’, shows how the farmers of the past and present deal with the soil of North Limburg.
North Limburg soil in the present, past and future
Upon entering the asparagus tunnel, visitors feel the sand beneath their feet. Two family farms in North Limburg show how the farmers of the past and the farmers of today work by means of a photo exhibition; How did people take care of the land in the past and now? And what challenges do they face? The exhibition also discusses land use in organic farming, circular agriculture and the green revolution, among other things. Soil samples from the sixteen church villages of the municipality of Horst aan de Maas show the diversity in the regional soil and visitors can feel the difference between sandy and clay soils. The last few metres of the asparagus tunnel are about contemporary innovations in land use.
Come and see, feel and meet
With the exhibition ‘The Earth’, Open Air Museum de Locht is participating in the seventh theme year of Kulturraum Niederrhein, with the motto ‘Erdung – grounding’. Come and see, feel and get acquainted with old and new developments in the use of our earth.