Exploring Keukenhof’s kaleidoscope of flower fields

KATY WHEELER EXPLORES THE GARDEN OF EUROPE IN HOLLAND + WIN A TRIP FOR TWO WITH DFDS WORTH £300

Tulips as far as the eye can see in a kaleidoscope of colours is the sun-drenched spectacle which greets you at Keukenhof. Once a year, from midMarch to mid-May, these former ornamental garden grounds in Lisse, a short drive from Amsterdam, spring to life to become one of the world’s biggest spring gardens.

And it’s not just home to Holland’s national flower. As well as tulips, millions of daffodils, hyacinths and other bulb flowers blanket the 80acres of Keukenhof, resulting in an intoxicating bouquet of aromas and an explosion of colour.

There’s more than just fields of flowers to explore too. Over the course of the eight weeks there’s more than 20 flower shows as the Dutch floricultural sector shows off the fruits of its labour in spectacular fashion in the park’s pavilions.

On our visit we caught the world’s largest lily show, which runs on the last 10 days of the season and features hundreds of varieties of this most pungent of blooms. 15,000 lilies had been used to create striking displays, from lilies spilling out of bike baskets and ornate picture frames to long-stemmed lilies cradling water features.

Each year, seven inspirational gardens within Keukenhof also take on their own themes, which draw upon current trends and aim to sow the seeds of creativity in visitors who may want to take ideas home to their own gardens. Highlights for 2018 included a Rebel Garden, which laughed in the face of gardening conventions with its wild colour clashes; a Hipster Garden complete with BBQ (though I’m not sure BBQs are the preserve of hipsters) and a Cupid’s Garden where you can take the most romantic of selfies. Be prepared to take your turn at the park’s most Instagrammable spots though, such as a flower-filled boat on one of the streams, where queues of people form, smartphone in hand, for the chance to get the perfect shot.

My favourite was the cool blues of the Delft Garden where the pale daffodils and white hyacinths are punctuated with mosaics and pots of that most distinctive of Dutch potteries. This garden is a picture postcard of the Netherlands sprung to life.

No visit to a Dutch tourist spot would be complete without a windmill, however, and Keukenhof has a fine one which towers over the park, as well as the surrounding bulb fields. Climb up the windmill’s winding wooden staircase and it offers the perfect vantage point to look out over the fields, which are free of crowds to allow the flowers to bloom undisturbed.

As well as natural art, each year the park plays host to sculptures, from abstract to more traditional forms, which are peppered amongst the flowers.

Though the artworks may go over the head of little visitors, there’s plenty to keep them entertained with an on site petting farm, maze and playground.

They’ll no doubt nag you at the many on-site shops too which are filled with Dutch delights, colourful clogs, Miffy merchandise and, of course, tulip bulbs. We couldn’t resist buying some for our own gardens: it’s hard not take a little bit of Keukenhof home with you. Keukenhof reopens next Spring. More at https:// keukenhof.nl/en/