KEUKENHOF FLOWER SHOW : POETRY IN BLOOM
(By Subbaram Danda)
It is a flamboyant riot of flashy colours. Rows and long rows of tulip plants sway gently in mild breeze displaying their flowery treasures in various colours – fiery scarlet and pure white, golden yellow and hazy blue, vibrant violet and suave rose, and a brilliant host of others. There are near black tulips as well!
The scene is the vast flower garden at Keukenhof in the small town of Lisse in South Holland, bedecked for an annual flower show between end-March and mid-May. The exhibition showcases not only tulips but also daffodils, hyacinths and other spring flowers. However, tulips are the cynosure of all eyes.
The park has set several records. It is the “most beautiful spring garden in the world” and the largest of its kind. It is considered “the most photographed place” on the planet. More than 4.5 million tulip flowers in over 100 varieties dazzle the onlookers. In 62 years since its inaugural show, the park has clocked over 50 million people!!
Rows and colourful rows of flower bulbs
Magical touch
The entire 80-acre Keukenhof garden has been pleasingly developed by landscape artists and horticultural experts aided by computers. There are hundreds of flower beds of various sizes and shapes amidst neatly-trimmed and smartly-groomed old towering trees. Vast fields have been separately earmarked for raising rows and rows of colourful flower bulbs and their hybrids on a large scale. Waterways with swans majestically gliding on them and fountains here and there provide a touch of magic.
Well-laid-out pathways for as long as 15 kilometres connect different parts of the garden, facilitating easy movement of visitors. One can pedal on a cycle around the flower fields or sail on shallow canals skirting them in eco-friendly “whistling boats.” Flower lovers come in caravans too, parking their vehicles along paths adjacent to the flower bulb fields, and enjoy a leisurely stroll admiring the blooms. The park also boasts of several statues and other works of art placed at strategic points. And the 280 benches and 32 bridges in the garden do not constitute the last word.
The history of the garden is as colourful as its flower bulbs. In the 15th century the area was a dense wood marked by huge trees interspersed with dunes and was the hunting ground of Dutch Countess Jacoba van Beieren. Herbs for the kitchen of the castle of the countess came from here. In the Dutch language keuken means kitchen and hence the name to the area.
Flower beds and fountains
It was in 1840 that an initiative was taken to raise a garden on scientific lines. Finally in 1949, the Mayor of Lisse with dozens of prominent flower growers and exporters came up with the idea of organizing an international open-air exhibition there to showcase, in particular, Holland’s flower bulb industry and kick-started the Keukenhof’s annual flower show. Since then there is no going back on the idea. The Netherlands enjoys the distinction of being the world’s largest exporter of flowers.
Turkish connection
For tulips, the mainstay of the Keukenhof garden, Holland is only an adopted home, not its birthplace. The flowers were first cultivated in Central Asia before they made their way to the west. In fact, the word tulip is said to have originated from the Turkish word tulbend meaning turban. Turkish farmers cultivated tulips as early as 1000 AD.
Tulips are regarded as a symbol of love. Purple flowers are supposed to represent the royalty. They have been cherished by the Dutch for generations and have become “an irrefutable hallmark” of Holland. In fact, there is a museum for tulips in the capital city of Amsterdam.
Now-a-days tulips and similar bulb varieties are cultivated all over the world, wherever the climate is conducive. Tulips have been planted in the garden in front of the Buckingham Palace in London. In China a festival is organized every spring. The US too has its own tulip parks. In India, they can be seen in full bloom in Kashmir during their season.
But the Keukenhof garden takes the cake. Thrilled by the delightful fare it offers, a connoisseur has remarked, “If there is a Garden of Eden, it is here, gorgeous and graceful.”
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