The greenhouses inside the grounds of the Royal Estate in the Brussels district of Laken opened to the public for just over 3 weeks on Friday. The Royal Greenhouses are not only exceptional examples of 19th century architecture and craftsmanship, but they also contain a large collection of exotic plants that would almost certainly perish if the greenhouses were not heated during the cold winter? But how do those that manage the greenhouses ensure that this is done in an environmentally friendly way?
Energy produced by Brussels waste incinerator is used to keep the Royal Greenhouses warm during the winter months
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The Royal Greenhouses were built for King Leopold II in 1873 by the architect Alphonse Balat. The greenhouses have a total surface area of 1.5 hectares. Inside the greenhouses there are palm trees, orange trees, azaleas and a whole host of sub-tropical plants.
At the end of his life King Leopold II bequeathed the greenhouses to the Royal Trust on condition that they would remain at the disposal of future Belgian monarchs. The Royal Greenhouses are normally not open to the public.
However, once a year, for just over 3 weeks in the spring they open their doors to the general public and around 140,000 people taker the opportunity to visit what is one of Belgium’s heritage treasures.
By the time the visitors come, nature has done its work and the flowers and plants are fully in bloom. But how are the greenhouses kept warm enough to ensure that the many plants that come from tropical climbs don’t perish during the cold winter months?
The Brussels regional news platform Bruzz writes that in years gone by heating oil was used, but those that manage the greenhouse started looking for a cheaper and more eco-friendly alternative. Fortunately, the Royal estate and the greenhouses are not far from the incinerator at Neder-Over-Heembeek (photo above).
The incinerator is managed by Brussel-Energie (Brussels Energy). Temperatures inside the incinerator can reach up to 1,000°C. The heat from the incineration process is turned into electricity that is put onto the grid. In addition to this, a lot of surplus heat is released. The Federal Buildings’ Agency, the Royal Trust and Brussel-Energy struck a deal to ensure that heat from the incinerator by piped to the greenhouses. Work to install the new heating system got under way in 2020.
Trenches were dug over a distance of two kilometres from the incinerator up to the Royal Eastate’s boiler rooms. Not only the Royal Greenhouses are heated in this way, but also the Laken Castle next door and the Docks Shopping Centre just down the road. In total this accounts for a network of 4.5 km of pipes.
These ensure that the three locations are heated in an environmentally friendly way. The Royal Greenhouses are open to the public until 18 May. Click here to reserve a ticket.