Norway's Residential Homeowners Puzzle: Why Don't They Own a Separate Piece of Land?
In the picturesque landscapes of Norway and Russia, gardening practices paint a distinct picture of each country's cultural ethos. Norwegian gardens, with their emphasis on working in harmony with nature and promoting biodiversity, stand in stark contrast to the productive kitchen gardens prevalent in Russia.
Most Norwegian houses are built on rocky soil, requiring the import of fertile soil to cultivate gardens. Despite this, the Norwegian people highly value their free time and are not willing to spend it on gardening after work. Instead, they prefer well-maintained lawns and flower pots, opting for a low-maintenance approach to outdoor work.
Norwegians spend their weekends actively, engaging in activities like sailing, going to the mountains, or relaxing in "hytte" - country cottages, rather than tending to their gardens. This approach to gardening emphasizes working in harmony with nature and promoting biodiversity, often prioritizing native plants that attract wildlife and maintain natural landscapes.
In contrast, Russian gardening places a stronger emphasis on vegetable plots, a cultural staple, with extensive seasonal soil preparation, planting cold-resistant crops, and more labor-intensive soil cultivation due to different climate and soil conditions. The Russian approach has historically emphasized productivity and soil tillage, with less overt integration of natural biodiversity principles compared to the Scandinavian model.
The costs of creating a small garden in Norway can exceed the cost of buying groceries several times, making it a less appealing option for many Norwegians. This, combined with the cultural code in Norway that values leisure and free time highly, contributes to the preference for low-maintenance outdoor spaces.
In Norway, it's not common for people to pick berries themselves; they usually buy them from stores. However, there are plantations in Norway where one can pick berries, such as strawberries in Hardanger. Berries in Norway are mainly consumed fresh during the season, not made into jams or compotes.
Robotic lawnmowers are often used by Norwegians to maintain their lawns, further reducing the need for manual labour. Meanwhile, in Russia, vegetable patches are a common sight, and it's not uncommon for people to grow their own fruits and vegetables.
Knut Haugen, a Norwegian agronomist, comments that the attitude towards the area around the house in Norway values aesthetics and minimal effort to maintain it. Stella Larsen noticed this peculiarity when she moved to Norway from Russia.
In summary, Norwegian outdoor work integrates ecological awareness and subtle intervention, whereas Russian gardening often emphasizes maximizing use of land through more direct soil cultivation and crop focus. This comparison offers a fascinating glimpse into the cultural differences between these two countries and their approaches to gardening and outdoor work.
The Norwegian lifestyle often incorporates well-maintained lawns and flower pots, reflecting a preference for low-maintenance home-and-garden activities, in line with embracing free time and minimizing manual labor.
Conversely, Russian gardening practices emphasize productivity and vegetable patch cultivation, showcasing a cultural legacy that values soil tillage and land utilization in a more labor-intensive manner.
