Romania’s Senate President and Dutch ambassador gather to launch a new ‘Uranus’ tulip

BUCAREST, Romania: To mark the opening of the Palace of the Parliament gardens in Bucarest, Romania’s Senate President Ms Anca Dragu and Dutch ambassador to Romania Roelof van Ees gathered to celebrate the christening of a new ‘Uranus’ tulip. The tulip is named in memory of Bucarest’s former Uranus district, which was bulldozed in the 1980s to make room for former dictator Ceaucescu’s behemoth House of the People.  

The 11-stories tall and 1,100 rooms building, designed as the nerve centre of Romania’s communist government, was also the opulent residence of former dictator Ceaucescu and his wife. Today, it is the Romanian parliament.

In 1984, to make room for such a large structure, the entire Uranus neighbourhood and parts of three others were razed to the ground overnight. People received notices in the morning to pack up and leave, and by noon the bulldozers arrived and started demolishing everything in sight. A total of 40,000 people were displaced, and 9,000 houses destroyed.

There was no landscape design plan, the Palace’s surroundings gardens remain unfinished,  and for many years the landscape was somewhat of a lost cause. Until now.

Romania’s Senate hired a Romanian and Dutch landscape architect to design a garden that is part of the surrounding landscape and architecture. This garden creates a sense of unity between the Palace and the people of Romania. It also gives a nod of appreciation to the former residents of the Uranus district.

The Senate has given its approval for the Palace of the Parliament garden master plan, which is being executed by the Urban Landscapes Romania consortium including Boomkwekerij Ebben, Molter BV, JUB Holland, Gebr. Seuren Rozenkwekerijen BV, Nophadrain, VIC Landscapes, Van Den Berk Boomkwekerijen and the Dutch bulb sector body Royal Anthos. During the first phase of the plan, vast amounts of the red ‘Uranus’ tulip have been planted on either side of the grand avenue that leads to the Palace.

The project is co-funded by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) and is part of a three-year PIB (Partners in Business) programme aimed at the Romanian amenity market. A Partners in Business (PIB) programme uses public and private funds to unlock a relatively new market for green professionals from the Netherlands. Click here to know how PIB works.

Working with local parties and the Dutch Embassy in Bucarest, Urban Landscapes Romania is a valuable mechanism to do business and grow together. The mission of the  consortium is to grow the  Romanian market for Dutch horticultural technology, nursery stock products, flower bulbs and services, bringing high quality and innovative product to the forefront

Leon Smet, secretary of Anthos says, “Urban planning in Romania and management of urban green spaces require products and expertise that our consortium members are able to provide.”

He adds the Romanian market offers long-term opportunities for Dutch exporters of nursery products and flower bulbs.