How many bulbs will bloom at Keukenhof this year? Over 7 million bulbs in 32 hectares (79 acres) of flowers. This is the largest flower garden on the planet - a festival that has been expanding since 1949 as a promotion for tulip growers. In the 15th century it was used for hunting and gathering herbs for the castle's kitchen. Keukenhof means Kitchen Garden.
Today there are 30 full-time gardeners who work year-round. Can you imagine what needs to happen in the autumn? It takes 3 months to plant it.
What do they do with the flowers that have bloomed? They dig out the bulbs and most are used as food for livestock, a reminder that tulips are edible.
This year's theme is Romance in Flowers. The rose show - and the red rose - will be showcased in a grand style.
How do you make 32 hectares of flowers interesting? The park is divided into theme gardens - Historical Garden, Inspirational Garden, Cupid's Garden, Holiday Romance Garden, Rob's Oriental Romance, Rebel Garden, Delft Blue Garden, Hipster Garden, Tea Garden and Health Garden.
There are flower shows inside pavilions throughout the Festival (March 22 - May 13). Each one is based on a specific flower - Anthurium, Orchid, Lisianthus, Freesia, Gerbera...and on.
What about the sightseeing flight over Keukenhof and neighbouring flower bulb growing fields? Flying at 300 meters, it would be a wonderful view of the Dutch landscape and those abstract squares of floral colour. With all the canals, one can travel through the bulb fields around Keukenhof in an electrically-propelled whisper boat.
The Facebook Page has photographs - a mini-vacation for us. I really enjoyed the cheeseweb.eu site coverage. It showed coverage over the years.
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