Quick neighborhood check: have you signed up for the NK Tegelwippen yet? Because spots are disappearing fast. Of the 100 available places, 87 are already taken, leaving just 13 open. The deadline is July 1, and once they are gone, they are gone.
The idea is super simple: you remove tiles from your front garden or facade strip, and the city gives you a free plant package in return. Easiest garden upgrade ever. 🌱
Why join in? A few solid reasons:
- Less heat in summer (your garden actually stays cooler)
- Rainwater soaks into the soil better during heavy showers
- A nicer, greener street for you and your neighbors
All planting days are on Saturday mornings, from 08.00 to 13.00:
- Kerkrade East on September 19, 2026
- Kerkrade North on September 26, 2026
- Kerkrade West on October 3, 2026
Sign up at kerkrade.nl/kerkrade-wipt-mee. Tip: do it tonight before it slips your mind.
And it really works: last spring, 85 front gardens in Kerkrade got greener thanks to this campaign.
The NK Tegelwippen is a national competition between Dutch municipalities, where cities compete for the most ‘flipped’ tiles per resident. It started in 2020 as a response to growing concerns about paved gardens worsening urban flooding and heat stress. One square meter of greenery can be up to 10 degrees cooler in summer than a tiled surface.
Source: Municipality of Kerkrade
