Gartenvielfalt im Kloster Malgarten

The former Benedictine convent dating from 1194 was the seat of the magistrate from 1815 to 1936.

After another eventful history, it passed into private ownership in 1986 and is now a decelerated place for art and culture as well as for special overnight stays and events - not only from the local providers of the creative "Forum Kloster Malgarten". It is definitely worth taking a walk or a (lantern) guided tour through the natural monastery grounds, some of which are home to special flora and fauna, or through the time-honored buildings. Particularly worth seeing are the gatehouse, the convent with its Romanesque and Gothic cloisters, stucco ceilings and medieval frescoes from various eras, as well as the extensively preserved Baroque furnishings and the Rococo stucco vaulting of the former monastery church and present-day Catholic parish church of St. Johannes Evangelist Malgarten. A visit to the monastery grounds can be combined with, for example, a creative activity with various local providers, an overnight stay and/or a delicious meal, e.g. opposite the monastery entrance in the Italian restaurant "Da Pino". For current information on gastronomy in the monastery, please refer to our website.
Two open (garden) days are held each year: on the last Sunday in June on the occasion of the GardenDreamSunday of the GardenDreamTour,  on the second Sunday in September on the occasion of the nationwide Open Monument Day, open from 11.00 am to 6.00 pm. You can expect: Culinary delights - live music - art and culture - guided tours and lectures - open studios and gardens - guest room tours - sales and information stands.

More information at www.kloster-malgarten.de
Information on guided tours at www.forum-kloster-malgarten.de/angebote/#fuehrungen
Information on open (garden) days at
www.forum-kloster-malgarten.de/angebote/#offenetuer
You can visit the following three gardens:

• the perennial and herb garden by Silke Schwarz
• the Mariengärtchen and the beguinage gardens by Barbara Brosch and Claudia Lohrmann
• the sculpture garden by Peter Badstübner and Rolf Brüning

All gardens are part of the GartenTraumTour, the Open Garden Gate Osnabrück and Surroundings and the Callwey Garden Guide Lower Saxony. Kloster Malgarten is also featured in the garden book "Gärten und Gartengesichter im Osnabrücker Land" by Imma Schmidt and Helmut Schmidt, which was published at the end of 2017.


1. The perennial and herb garden by Silke Schwarz
It is located between the guest house/judge's house and the concert barn in the northern part of the grounds. The garden architect and perennial gardener designed the garden, which is in bloom almost all year round, with a strictly geometric layout. It is also more or less barrier-free, adapted to the needs of Ms. Schwarz as an independent wheelchair user. Visitors will find a wide variety of plants including perennials, low-growing shrubs, climbing plants, herbs and soft fruit. Self-seeding wild herbs and annual and biennial plants turn the garden into a field for experimentation. The ground design with colorful ceramic paving stones and recycled paving, as well as the lighting, which bathes the garden in an enchanting atmosphere at dusk on special occasions, are also unusual. Special motto in the garden: Creative recycling - how can I create individual garden situations with simple means and clever ideas? The expert offers guided tours on the topics of garden and planting planning, the use of (wild) herbs and plants and barrier-free gardening on request. Information about the garden and its owner is displayed in the apartment windows facing the front garden.

Opening times:
By arrangement by phone or email or spontaneously. If the owner is not at home, the private garden can be viewed from outside.

Admission:
€1.00-2.00 per adult (voluntary donation);
Guided tour fee €90.00 for 90 min, regardless of the number of people

Address:
Garden architect Silke Schwarz
Am Kloster 2a
49565 Bramsche-Malgarten
Tel. 05461 - 969 77 50
silke-schwarz@osnanet.de
www.forum-kloster-malgarten.de/garten-mehr-silke-schwarz/



2. The Mariengärtchen and the beguine gardens of Barbara Brosch and Claudia Lohrmann
Next to Silke Schwarz's garden is the Mariengärtchen, a lushly flowering small sunken garden on the east side of the magistrate's/guest house at the projecting half-timbered extension with the house number 2b. A number of flowering perennials and biennials as well as soft fruit and an apple tree can be found here - which brings us to the lady plants: Roses and other members of the rose family such as apple, lilies and Mary's bedstraw (St. John's wort) all have a connection to Mary. Opposite the Mariengärtchen, the two beguines tend and cultivate the so-called Beginenland with its fire place, circle dance spiral, vegetable garden and many secluded corners to linger in, embedded in a deliberate "wilderness" and surrounded by monastery moats and mighty old trees. To the left of the road to Rieste is the beguinage or "painted garden". Barbara Brosch organizes nature-related trips and seminars for women: Canoeing, pilgrimages, monastic seasons throughout the year, singing and dancing, women's culture, fairy tales. Together with Claudia Lohrmann, she is the founder of "beginen in malgarten", a way of life for women that goes back to the medieval beguine movement as an alternative to family or monastery and is networked in the "Dachverband der Beginen". Living simply with the seasons is one of their goals, which is realized, among other things, by cultivating fallow and arable land and by growing vegetables that enrich the menu seasonally.

Opening hours:
If the residents are not in sight, the gardens can be visited spontaneously . Guided tours on the topic of "Beguines" are also possible by arrangement.

Admission:
A donation is welcome

Address:
Barbara Brosch and Claudia Lohrmann
Am Kloster 2/2b
49565 Bramsche-Malgarten
Tel. 05461 996 997
barbara.brosch@freenet.de
www.forum-kloster-malgarten.de/frauenreisen-barbara-brosch/
and www.forum-kloster-malgarten.de/beginen-im-malgarten/


3. Sculpture garden by Peter Badstübner and Rolf Brüning
Since 2012, the actor Peter Badstübner and the sculptor and painter Rolf Brüning have been transforming the formerly overgrown plot behind the "Atelier im Malgarten" on the southern monastery grounds into a charming location for Brüning's sculptures and an appealing environment for his sculpture courses. Her aim is not to force a garden, but to work with the conditions on site. The result is an area between "controlled wilderness" and ornamental and kitchen garden, in which rose and stinging nettle, marsh iris and pumpkin exist on an equal footing, yet separated from each other, and contribute to an ambience that forms the ideal background for Brüning's sculptures.
Directly next to the sculpture garden, Peter Badstübner has been building a stone circle made of historic sandstone using dry stone walls since 2017 - an ideal venue for events and gatherings, where you can also relax and unwind on your own.

Opening times:
The sculpture garden is also accessible when the residents are not present

Admission:
A small donation is welcome

Address:
Peter Badstübner and Rolf Brüning
Am Kloster 4
49565 Bramsche-Malgarten
Tel. 05461 - 958 96 86
p.badstuebner@gmx.net
www.forum-kloster-malgarten.de/atelier-im-malgarten/
www.atelier-im-malgarten.de/skulpturen-garten