Végétalab – a citizen incubator for a greener and more resilient city

Located in the Bempt park, the Végétalab is an innovative municipal nursery. Its ambition: to produce plants locally adapted to the city while becoming a place of meeting, learning and experimentation around greening.

The objectives of Végétalab

• To produce locally native plants adapted to urban conditions, without chemicals and watered only with rainwater.

• To create a space for exchange between citizens, associations, professionals, researchers and students around the knowledge and practices of greening.

• To support residents in their greening projects in the street, district or municipality.

• To strengthen biodiversity by cultivating perennial and sustainable honey plants from local seeds.

A fertile place in the heart of the city

Installed on an old vegetable garden in the Bempt marshes valley, the Végétalab covers 1280 m², including:

• 200 m² of crops,

• 1000 m² of meadows and hedges,

• 80 m² of infrastructure (compost, soil storage).

The plants are grown from seed to final pot, watered exclusively with rainwater and without chemical inputs.  

The choice of species combines aesthetics, climate adaptation and ecological value. Concrete result: despite the recent heat waves, the beds from Végétalab did not require any watering, proof of their robustness and durability.

A project that is already unifying

Since 2019, the Végétalab has supported many local projects and enabled the emergence of multiple flower spaces in Forest. Today, it is a real urban laboratory : a place where concrete solutions for a greener and more resilient city are produced, experimented with and shared.

A European opening

Faced with climate challenges and the need to green cities, Végétalab offers an easily reproducible approach. Its prospects:

• Share its expertise with other European cities wishing to create their own citizen incubator,

• Strengthen local and European cooperation around the production of plants adapted to the urban environment,

• Expand its production to supply other Brussels municipalities.

By combining local production, biodiversity and citizen participation, the Végétalab demonstrates that it is possible to reinvent our cities from plants.