{"id":1618,"date":"2026-07-28T14:02:37","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T11:02:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grasslife.lv\/open-meadow-day-held-in-the-braki-meadows-of-ergli-with-nature-farmers-the-viganti-brothers-of-neganti-gardi\/"},"modified":"2026-07-28T14:02:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T11:02:37","slug":"open-meadow-day-held-in-the-braki-meadows-of-ergli-with-nature-farmers-the-viganti-brothers-of-neganti-gardi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grasslife.lv\/en\/open-meadow-day-held-in-the-braki-meadows-of-ergli-with-nature-farmers-the-viganti-brothers-of-neganti-gardi\/","title":{"rendered":"Open Meadow Day held in the \u201cBraki\u201d meadows of \u0112rg\u013ci with nature farmers \u2013 the V\u012bganti brothers of \u201cNeganti gardi\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

On 25 July, the Latvian Fund for Nature held an Open Meadow Day at the R\u016bdolfs Blaumanis Memorial Museum \u201cBraki\u201d and in the natural meadows surrounding it. The event brought together participants interested in learning about the value of natural meadows, meadow management experience and restoration opportunities. The event took place with nature-friendly farmers Gun\u0101rs and Art\u016brs V\u012bgants, the founders of the \u201cNeganti gardi\u201d brand, who have been managing the \u201cBraki\u201d meadows for 15 years. <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The day began with morning coffee at the \u201cBraki\u201d museum, where participants learned about the programme and began discussing natural meadows.<\/p>\n

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Open Meadow Day participants at \u201cBraki\u201d. Photo: Estere Fimbauere.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After the morning coffee, host Gun\u0101rs V\u012bgants, together with Latvian Fund for Nature grassland expert Baiba Strazdi\u0146a, spoke about the experience of managing the \u201cBraki\u201d meadows and restoring natural grasslands. They explained why conserving natural meadows is important for biodiversity \u2014 they are among the most species-rich habitats in our region \u2014 and discussed methods that can be used to restore natural meadows. <\/p>\n

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Gun\u0101rs V\u012bgants and Baiba Strazdi\u0146a talk about natural meadow management at \u201cBraki\u201d. Photo: Estere Fimbauere.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The \u201cBraki\u201d meadows are special because of their historical continuity \u2014 they have existed as meadows and pastures for more than a hundred years. They are an integral part of the cultural landscape around \u0112rg\u013ci, and it is possible that R\u016bdolfs Blaumanis himself once walked through these meadows and drew inspiration from them. Long-term, targeted land management has helped preserve and develop one of Latvia\u2019s biodiverse natural meadows here. <\/p>\n

During the walk, participants explored the diversity of natural meadow plants and learned about natural grassland indicator species, including field scabious, as well as the methods used by the V\u012bganti brothers to restore the meadows. To gain practical insight into meadow species diversity, the group also marked out a one-square-metre section of meadow and counted the plant species found within it. During the meadow bingo game, participants searched for species, finding the meadow plants and animals listed on their bingo cards. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"
An informative walk through the natural meadows at \u201cBraki\u201d. Photo: Estere Fimbauere.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Natural meadow indicator species \u2013 devil\u2019s-bit Scabious. Photo: Estere Fimbauere.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After the walk, participants gathered for a picnic with burgers prepared by \u201cNeganti gardi\u201d, continuing conversations about nature, meadows and sustainable farming.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

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Picnic with \u201cNeganti gardi\u201d burgers. Photo: Estere Fimbauere.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Brothers Art\u016brs and Gun\u0101rs V\u012bgants see agriculture not only as a business, but also as an opportunity to care for the surrounding environment. For more than ten years, they have been involved in the production and sale of organic beef, while also using natural grassland restoration methods to support the conservation of the landscape and biodiversity. <\/p>\n

The Latvian Fund for Nature thanks Gun\u0101rs and Art\u016brs V\u012bgants for their hospitality and for sharing their experience, as well as all the event participants for their interest and involvement in exploring natural meadows.<\/p>\n

Open Meadow Days provide an opportunity to meet nature-friendly farmers and learn more about natural meadows – one of the most biodiverse ecosystems in Latvia. Conserving natural meadows requires appropriate, knowledge-based management, and events such as these help raise awareness of the importance of conserving and managing these valuable natural habitats. <\/p>\n

This summer\u2019s series of Open Meadow Days will conclude with an event on 8 August in Skr\u012bveri, hosted by grassland manager J\u0101nis Kravalis. <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On 25 July, the Latvian Fund for Nature held an Open Meadow Day at the R\u016bdolfs Blaumanis Memorial Museum \u201cBraki\u201d and in the natural meadows surrounding it. The event brought together participants interested in learning about the value of natural meadows, meadow management experience and restoration opportunities. The event took place with nature-friendly farmers Gun\u0101rs […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1505,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1618","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nOpen Meadow Day held in the \u201cBraki\u201d meadows of \u0112rg\u013ci with nature farmers \u2013 the V\u012bganti brothers of \u201cNeganti gardi\u201d - GrassLIFE<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/grasslife.lv\/en\/open-meadow-day-held-in-the-braki-meadows-of-ergli-with-nature-farmers-the-viganti-brothers-of-neganti-gardi\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Open Meadow Day held in the \u201cBraki\u201d meadows of \u0112rg\u013ci with nature farmers \u2013 the V\u012bganti brothers of \u201cNeganti gardi\u201d - GrassLIFE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On 25 July, the Latvian Fund for Nature held an Open Meadow Day at the R\u016bdolfs Blaumanis Memorial Museum \u201cBraki\u201d and in the natural meadows surrounding it. 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