Grasduinen

The first issue of Grasduinen, September 1979
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The first issue of Grasduinen, September 1979

In September 1979, the first issue of Grasduinen appeared, subtitled 'Monthly magazine with a heart for nature'. The editors wrote in a foreword: 'Perhaps the nature magazine you have been looking forward to for years, because you are a browser yourself. (...) You enjoy looking out for a blue tit or a beautiful oyster mushroom. Grasduinen aims to capture this beauty every month'. In the first issue, the magazine's formula was already presented quite firmly, with articles on birds, deer, and wild fruit, but also a profile of Jac. P. Thijsse.

After thorough market research, publisher VNU launched the magazine with a print run of 70,000 copies. A review in the Algemeen Dagblad was not immediately wildly enthusiastic:

If you want to have a task as a nature magazine, I believe it is to drive your audience out the door to go see for themselves. But Grasduinen generally views nature through a polished window.

Nevertheless, the magazine managed to appeal to a broad audience: shortly after the launch, the circulation rose to 80,000 copies per issue.

Permanent employees

Grasduinen contained many photos in every issue that were purchased internationally. But Dutch photographers also contributed their share. They even had their say in the magazine with some regularity. Photographer Martin Kers wrote his own column for a long time, in which he described a nature reserve, illustrated with his own photos. The influential nature photographers Fred Hazelhoff and Flip de Nooyer provided features for the magazine. The illustrator Marjolein Bastin, who had already had her own nature page in Libelle since 1974, also worked for Grasduinen for years. Her work was collected in the book A Year of Nature.

Reader's mail

A regular feature in the magazine was the reader mail section. In this section, readers expressed their concerns about the encroaching tourism ("Every year [Schouwen-Duiveland] got busier, because it was ideal to spend the summer holidays there with small children. [...] When I look at the tourist industry there now, my heart bleeds") and shared anecdotes. Not infrequently, they also sent in photos themselves, taken during walks at home and abroad.

Renewal

In the 1980s and 1990s, the circulation of Grasduinen declined. In an interview, editor-in-chief Anne-Marie Tassier explained that a certain degree of repetition had crept into the articles: 'A lion is a lion, no matter how you photograph the animal.' She decided to bring nature a little closer to Dutch reality: 'In the past, any trace of human intervention was frowned upon, but a photo without a farm gate or church tower is not very realistic in the Netherlands.' According to her, the readers at the end of the century are 'people over 40 who have a bit more time to enjoy nature and head out into it.'

Roots

In 2011, the magazine Grasduinen came to an end after 32 years. Under the new name Roots, the publication was continued from September of that year, with more pages and a slightly broader approach. While Grasduinen had established itself among the over-45s, the new magazine aimed to reach younger people. Roots editor-in-chief Fanny Glazenburg explained: 'Roots caters to the needs of a large group of people – especially younger ones. The need for a moment of calm amidst the hustle and bustle of everyday life. And where better to find that than in nature?'

Grasduinen in the KB

The KB holds all issues of Grasduinen. They can be requested under request number TE 2518. You can request them via the KB catalogue to view in the reading room of the KB.

References

More about the Netherlands collection (in Dutch)

Also in the collection