Bulbs light a Dutch spring

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This was published 10 years ago

Bulbs light a Dutch spring

Bloom time: Cycling through the tulip fields.

Bloom time: Cycling through the tulip fields.Credit: Alamy

Fred Mawer explores Holland in bloom in the two months that its tulip fields and gardens are at their most brilliant.

I'm not entrusted with much of the gardening at home - my chief responsibility is mowing the lawn. But you don't need to be the least bit horticulturally minded to be wowed by the Keukenhof. And I certainly was.

Set in the heart of the Netherlands' prime bulb region south-west of Amsterdam, the garden in its present form dates to 1949, when a group of bulb growers came up with the idea of holding an annual exhibition as a showcase for their wares.

Keukenhof gardens.

Keukenhof gardens.Credit: Getty Images

Sixty-four years on, the Keukenhof claims to be the most beautiful spring garden in the world, and it's fair to say that in mid-April, when I was there in 2012, the place looked remarkable. Artistically presented across its 32 hectares are arcs and curves, lines and strips of tulips, narcissi and hyacinths in unnaturally vivid colours, interspersed with reflective ponds and whimsical sculptures.

And that, essentially, is the Keukenhof's appeal. Like the hordes of Japanese groups that visit, you spend most of your time wandering around in an aesthetic stupor, snapping away at the psychedelic blazes of colour.

To have time to see everything, you will need to allow the best part of the day there. The Zocher Garden, laid out in English-landscape style in the mid-19th century, is the prettiest area, while the walled Historical Garden, planted with rare, old bulbs, is the most interesting.

There are also the Inspiration Gardens - think Chelsea Flower Show - and pavilions that house striking displays of less-hardy plants such as orchids, and provide shelter from showers for less-hardy visitors.

To appreciate what goes into making the Keukenhof look as it does, take one of the free guided tours on offer each day. They are led by volunteers who are members of Holland's largest gardening club. As we wandered around, Iris, my charming and aptly named guide, explained to me how the Keukenhof plants 7 million bulbs (4.5 million of which are tulips) each autumn, then digs them all up at the end of the flowering season.

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Given the garden is open for only two months of the year, it's a crazy amount of work - but the ephemeral nature of the Keukenhof's beauty makes it all the more astonishing.

Cycling through the bulb fields is a must. In springtime, the pancake-flat plain of fields running south of Haarlem down towards Leiden becomes a vast quilt of dazzling, primary colours of daffodils, hyacinths and tulips.

For me, cycling through the fields, with the scent of the flowers wafting through the air, was easily as enjoyable as visiting the Keukenhof, and wonderfully tranquil after the crowds of the garden.

Rent-a-Bike van Dam (rent-a-bikevandam.nl) rents bikes from outside the entrance to the Keukenhof, so combining an hour or two cycling through the bulb fields with visiting the garden couldn't be easier. A bike costs €10 ($12) to hire, and you're provided with a map and directions.

Options range from a short circuit in the fields immediately around the Keukenhof to a three-hour cycle over to the dunes and the sea. Ask where the colours are looking their best before setting off. As at the Keukenhof, late April to early May is usually the prime time.

BARELY TIME TO STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES AS THE HAMMER FALLS ON TRADING

FloraHolland's Aalsmeer complex is the world's largest trading centre for flowers and plants. It's open to the public on weekdays from 7am, and you need to get there early — certainly before 8am.

You follow raised walkways through an enormous warehouse. Such is the size of it that staff get around on bikes, and boxes of anthuriums, roses and chrysanthemums are shunted around on metal trolleys.

You can also observe the fascinating, back-to-front "Dutch" auctions that take place.

As batches of flowers pass through the auction halls like prizes on a game-show conveyor belt, the prices of the lots, displayed on screens, descend. Tense-looking buyers sit in tiered rows, weighing up when to stop the countdown by pressing a button in front of them. The easiest way to the complex by public transport is to take bus number 172, which leaves every 15 minutes from outside Amsterdam's Centraal station. Self-guided tours cost €6 ($7.40).

See floraholland.com.

FAST FACTS

Getting there

Emirates has a fare to Amsterdam for about $2025 low-season return from Sydney and Melbourne, including taxes. Fly to Dubai (about 14hr) and then to Amsterdam (7hr 20min); see emirates.com.

Buses to the Keukenhof depart frequently from outside Schiphol's arrivals hall: the journey takes 35 minutes, and the one-way fare is €6 ($7.40).

Touring there The Keukenhof (keukenhof.nl) is open until May 20. Admission costs €15. The free, hour-long guided tours depart daily at 2pm from the Juliana Pavilion.

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