Clingendael Estate
Pendulum wall with Espalier Fruit Restored in all its Glory
The pendulum fruit wall at Clingendael Estate dates from 1730 and stretches 20 meters. In 2014, the fruit wall was renovated and replanted with espalier trees. On the opposite side of the lawn you will find a second, straight fruit wall with a few fruit trees.
Fruit Walls at Clingendael Estate
Clingendael has two types of fruit walls: a straight fruit wall and a pendulum fruit wall.
Straight Fruit Wall
A straight fruit wall is the simplest type of a fruit wall. The crucial difference between an ‘ordinary’ wall and a straight fruit wall is that the latter was specially built (!) for the purpose of growing espalier fruit trees. That’s why a fruit wall is always fitted with either wooden slats or galvanized metal tension wires.
Times have changed. Nowadays building a stone fruit wall for the sake of growing fruit would be insane. In contrast, in the 1870s the French city of Montreuil had a maze of 600 km of stone fruit walls for the commercial production of peaches!
Pendulum Fruit Wall
A pendulum wall was constructed by first building rectangle pillars. In second phase the space in between the pillars was filled with curved masonry. The end result is an alternating pattern of flat wall parts and arc-shaped niches.
The pendulum wall at Clingendael Estate has 6 niches of 3 m wide on the sunny side. Each niche has hardwood slats attached for tying the espalier fruit. Different fruits (pear, peach, mulberry) grow along the wall in different espalier shapes (cord, palmette, fan).
Pictures of the Fruitwall
Address & Accessibility
Address
Clingendael Estate (Dutch: Landgoed Clingendael)
Clingendael 12A
2597 VH The Hague
The Netherlands
Accessibility
Als je van de voorkant van Instituut Clingendael naar de vijver loopt (200 m er vandaan), ligt de slingermuur halverwege aan je rechterhand. Op dezelfde hoogte aan je linkerhand staat vóór de hoogstam boomgaard de andere, rechte fruitmuur.
Opening Hours & Admission Prices
Free access from sunrise to sunset.
More info
Also consult our article ‘Park Clingendael in The Hague’
Combine your visit with a walk through Park Clingendael. If you’re lucky you can also visit the old Japanese Garden Clingendael. This part is open just a few weeks in May / June (springtime) and October (autumn colours), yet is certainly worth a visit.
