Millions of spring flowers, such as tulips and hyacinths, are painting the countryside
During April and May, when the tulip fields are in bloom, tulip parades and flower shows attract many visitors to Keukenhof in the Netherlands.
About 7 million spring flowers and more than 800 varieties of tulips can be admired in the flower fields of this huge Dutch spring garden.
Keukenhof is one of the main attractions of the Netherlands, a country in Western Europe. The spring garden is located roughly 40km/25 Miles to the west of the Dutch capital city of Amsterdam. This year, Keukenhof is still open until 13 May.
During the Spring season, colorful tulip fields can be see in many parts of the Netherlands, but tulips are grown in many countries. Every year, tulip festivals are held not only in many Dutch towns and cities, but also in various places around the globe. From this weekend, the Canadian tulip festival in Ottawa is expected to showcase over 1 million tulips in bloom.
Tulips grow from bulbs that are planted in autumn. The cup-like flowers belong to the lily family and grow in temperate climates with cool and long spring seasons. There are more than 4000 different varieties of tulips cultivated. However, most tulips are grown in the Netherlands, from where about 2 billion tulips are cut and exported all over the world every year.
In fact, tulips originate in Asia and were brought to Europe in the late 15th century. In Turkey, tulips are very popular and the tulip is the national flower.
source: Keukenhof
more images and info: Ottawa Tulip Festival
image: FamVeld/shutterstock.com