Simon
How it started...
At the age of 9, fishing was Simon van der Velde's biggest hobby/leisure. After school he caught baitfish for the local shopkeeper in the village. Because fishing went very well for him and he received 10 cents per fish, this provided a nice pocket money. One day Simon fell into the water and went under. Soaking wet he went to take away his 20 or so fish and received 2 guilders for it. When Simon was standing in the store soaking wet, the shopkeeper took a water plant from his wet coat. The shopkeeper put the water plant in the goldfish bowl and gave Simon 25 cents. Simon had quickly calculated that 25 cents was more than 10 cents and asked if the shopkeeper needed any more water plants. This was indeed the case. The interest in aquatic plants had been piqued. Soon a lively trade blossomed.
Simon van der Velde 1972
and how to proceed
1986
Years later in 1986, Simon received a number of letters from Africa offering aquatic plants. Curious and knowing that a market existed, he hesitated to go there. A free opening flight of KLM to Conakry in West Africa made the choice easy. Tropical water plants were taken back with him. Unfortunately they could not grow without the right climate and so a piece of space in a nursery was rented.
1995
In 1995 Simon got the opportunity to buy a greenhouse in Bleiswijk. At this location there is a section of pond plants including very many water lilies and oxygen plants. At some other locations aquarium plants, floating plants and bank plants are grown.
1998
Since 1998, Van der Velde Waterplanten B.V. has a water lily and bank plant nursery in China where plant material is sourced.
2012
Chris van der Velde joins the family business. In addition to the grower's blood, he has also inherited his father's commercial spirit and drive for innovation.
2015
Development of the Amazingworld concept, with side branches such as Swampworld, Desertworld, Waterworld, Veggieworld and Fruityworld.
2017
Van der Velde wins an important prize in the flower and plant world: The Dutch Tulip Award.
2018
From the idea of sustainability, Ecoworld is launched. A product line in which packaging is produced co2 neutrally.
2022
I believe that a water feature, in the form of a pond or aquarium, can contribute to moments of rest and relaxation. Therefore I would like to share my knowledge and make sure that people can build their own pond and enjoy it. This without having to perform a lot of maintenance. For this reason I have summarized all the questions that have been asked over the years regarding ponds and water features in Simons Vijveradvies Boek.
Simons Vision
Pure Nature
You read more and more that it is advised to test the water of your pond for KH, GH and PH values. Do not be tempted to buy all kinds of measuring devices and water conditioners. None of this is necessary: if your fish swim and your plants grow, the water in your pond is of good quality. These are the indicators!
More beautiful every year
Garden centers usually sell a wide range of water plants, which unfortunately are often not hardy. This means that you have to buy new pond plants every year... We have deliberately chosen a small assortment of all hardy water plants, with which you can easily achieve a clear, biologically balanced pond.
35 years of sharing expertise
With the right approach and a good planting plan, you can save a lot of money and maintenance. The planting plan has immediate consequences for the depth of the pond, for example. So don't dig first and only then think about the planting plan but do it the other way around. Plants are quite capable of filtering the water themselves and keeping it clear, clean and healthy. A good planting plan will ensure that algae has little or no chance to grow.
With the right planting plan, you won't need an expensive pump, filter or water enhancers.
POND PLANTING ADVICE
Do you already have a pond or are you looking to build one? Make a choice below for the right advice
Why Simon van der Velde water plants?
What customers say about us
I had my garden decorated by a gardener. Only the pond still had to be done, but it turned out the gardener had little or no knowledge of it. So I went looking for a pond specialist and called vd Velde and explained what my pond looked like and what my wishes were. After which he said that when he was in the area he would drop by. A few days later I met Simon and he has ensured that we now have a beautiful pond.
For our fishpond, we were looking for native aquatic plants to create more shelter for our newly hatched fish. Simon visited our location and advised us to buy swamp plants and oxygen plants. After 1 growth season our fish stock has increased and the new fish release has grown enormously. This is partly due to the perfect composition that have provided adequate shelter for our fish.
Simon came by and gave me an advice which appealed to me enormously! A week later the pond was decorated by van der Velde. After half a year of green the pond had become the showpiece of the garden! Simon, thanks!
I wanted to have plants in my koi pond and almost all koi specialists told me that this was not possible. until I came on a birthday with Simon in conversation. he told me that a swamp filter linked to my koi pond would relieve the filter so I had to clean it less often and would get plants and flowers in my koi pond. simon has advised me how I could achieve my wish in a cheap and simple way. I am extremely satisfied with the advice and the result.
Simon thanks for the beautiful batch of plants. As you said 100% bloom guarantee and everything is flowering beautifully.
Father and son the perfect combination
Simon's son Chris has been working in the family business since he was 15 years old and also studied ICT and Logistics. At 20 he started for himself with an online webshop where he started selling Amazingworld and Ecoworld products.
Translating Simon's knowledge into the digital world
Not much later, Chris also got the idea to share his father's years of experience and knowledge, with the goal of inspiring and advising as many people as possible through this website
