On a beautiful spring day in Minnesota I ventured out to the Brand Farms in Farmington, Minnesota for its tulip festival debut. Having planted over 160,000 Dutch tulip bulbs last fall, the Brands opened up their tulip field this spring for the public to enjoy the fruits of their labor.
According to their website “Brand Farms is a family dairy farm originally purchased in 1957 by German immigrants, Anton and Marie Brand, and has been passed down through four generations. Aaron Brand is the fourth generation who farms with his father, John. His grandfather, Richard, was born in 1932 and still has a daily presence on the farm.”
As I drove down the dusty dirt road I approached the farm an hour after it opened and was surprised – the parking lot was overflowing and cars were parked everywhere.
Word is out, and the tulips are up, and the festival is in full swing (it opened May 2 and runs through May 24).
I waited in line to board the tractor-pulled wagon that takes you out to the tulip field. It’s the only way you can get there (and there is a charge).
As we approached the field, there was a pop of exquisite colors and it reminded me of the aerial photos you see of the Netherland’s tulip fields (well… on a significantly smaller scale!)
On this day, many of the tulips were in full bloom. There were a few that have not opened yet, but I got an excellent first impression. A few interesting oddities were placed among the tulips for photo ops.
My favorite was a grand piano amongst the tulips. There were a couple of clawfoot bathtubs too. There was a variety of activities to keep the visiting kiddos engaged. One food truck was open this day, but I believe more food trucks are there on the weekends.
As I was taking photos of the many striking colors of tulips I was reminded of a time when a friend called me and told me she was standing in the flower shop wanting to buy me a bouquet of tulips.
She decided to call and ask me what color I wanted…and I said white. She was surprised, and said she was glad she called to ask because she would never have chosen white.
I have always liked white flowers. There were rows of spectacular white tulips at the tulip festival.
But while I stood looking at the tulips, I wondered…if I could pick a bouquet from this field which color would I choose? I decided I wanted one of every color…they were all so glorious.
It was a lovely morning at the first annual tulip festival at the Brand Farms. I’m glad annual is in the name. I’d bet they will add more tulips each year.
It continues to amaze me how there are so many variety of flowers…and then with each variety such an array of colors.
