Hillegom Warriors

Description: Hillegom Warriors is an innovative graduation project focused on fighting the invasive Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) in collaboration with a landscaping company and the Gemeente Hillegom. Japanese knotweed spreads at a rapid pace. Native plants are smothered and have little chance to survive. Traditional control methods are often costly, labour-intensive, or harmful to the environment so pigs have been introduced to combat this exotic newcomer. For the past two years, pigs have been deployed in a park in Hillegom. They eagerly eat the soft stems of the knotweed and in the areas where the pigs forage, Japanese knotweed has been eliminated. Volunteers take good care of the pigs, and their enclosure has become a central meeting place.

Sponsor: Municipality of Hillegom

Floral Design: Marlene van de Ploeg

Decorators: Scouting Lisser Kaninefaten