More than a million tulips paint landscape of Kearney farm
It’s a postcard scene from the Netherlands. Neatly arranged rows of colorful tulips paint the landscape under a Dutch windmill. People walk through the blooms taking in their beauty.
It looks like the Netherlands, but it’s not. This is Kearney, Missouri.
Spring has arrived at The Fun Farm in Kearney where colorful tulip fields are either in full bloom or on the brink of blooming. That means it’s time for the farm’s annual Tulip Festival.
“Anna and Tommy Christopher, are the owners, and they did an amazing job of planting over a million and a half tulips,” said Debbie Bruce of The Fun Farm, a 300-acre farm filled with more than 30 farm attractions, farm animals, and of course, tulips. Patches of different colored tulips create a patchwork of colors across 12 acres. Red, yellow, orange, pink, white and purple are just a few of the colors visitors will encounter in the fields.
“They nurture those bulbs all year long,” Bruce said. “And then we just kind of have to wait on the weather to see when those are going to spring.”
The Tulip Festival, which kicked off on Friday, showcases more than 20 varieties of the spring bulbs planted in vibrant color blocks throughout the field. “We never really have a set opening date,” Bruce said. “We just kind of wait for the tulips to tell us when it’s time to open.”
Stationed amid the rows and rows of tulips is a display of vintage tractors. “Tommy is a farmer at heart and he loves to find any tractor that he can get to put out there,” Bruce said. “He just brought one in the other day that he went out of state to get because he just loves to show the farm environment out here.”
A large, picturesque Dutchstyle red windmill was installed a couple of years ago and is the backdrop for many of the visitors’ photos.
After paying admission, visitors can opt to cut tulips for an additional fee. They may choose from three different size vases, are given a pair of scissors and then go into the fields to cut the tulips they’d like to take home. A freestanding swing, ensconced in a circle of flowers, is another popular spot for selfies and fun photographs.
Known for their Fall Festival and pumpkin patch, the 11year-old farm also features the KC Berry Fest for strawberries and also you-pick apples in late summer. Food, goodies and beverages are sold at the farm.
Some people may remember seeing Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, his wife, Brittany and their kids visit the farm, which was shown on an episode of “Quarterback” on Netflix.
A trip to The Fun Farm requires wearing comfortable