Roozengaarde – A bit of Holland in America
We just returned from a visit to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, and it was impressive! You start by walking through a magnificently designed garden, which is annually redesigned and replanted so that each spring season features an entirely new floral layout. Over 150 tulip types and more than 30 daffodil varieties fill the garden, in addition to flowering rivers of muscari, an assortment of hyacinths, and other specialty flowers.
After taking about 100 pictures in the garden, it’s on to the fields of tulips so large they disappear into the horizon! As far as your eyes can see, bright swathes of colors, reds, yellows, purples, white and all variations in between!
The first tulip bulbs were planted in the Skagit Valley in 1947 by a Dutch immigrant named William Roozen. He grew up in a family of tulip growers that had been growing tulips in Holland since the 1700s. Roozen brought his expertise to the United States and started with just a few acres of tulip bulbs, which he sold to local florists and nurseries. Over time, Roozen’s tulip-growing operation expanded, and he formed the Washington Bulb Company, which became the largest tulip bulb grower in North America with over 2000 acres planted.
A little tulip history
The tulip is native to central Asia and was first cultivated in the Ottoman Empire, modern-day Turkey, in the 16th century. The Ottomans were particularly fond of the flower and cultivated it extensively, and it soon became a symbol of wealth and prestige.
In the early 17th century, the Dutch began importing tulip bulbs from Turkey and quickly became enamored with the flower’s beauty and uniqueness. The tulip soon became popular throughout the Netherlands, and a booming trade in tulip bulbs developed. The demand for tulip bulbs grew rapidly, and prices skyrocketed, with some bulbs selling for as much as a small house. This period, known as “Tulip Mania,” lasted from 1634 to 1637 and is considered one of the first speculative bubbles in history. However, the bubble eventually burst, and despite this, the tulip remained a popular flower in the Netherlands. Today, the Netherlands is one of the largest producers and exporters of tulip bulbs in the world.
The tulip festival is held in April; the exact dates change a bit each year based upon the weather’s effect on blooming.
You can get more information at tulips.com or via Facebook at @roozengaarde.
RoozenGaarde, 15867 Beaver Marsh Rd., Mount Vernon, WA 98273.
RoozenGaarde info for the Tulip Festival
