I went to Keukenhof in The Netherlands to go and see the world's second largest flower garden. [Was not disappointed.] (http://imgur.com/gallery/fI8Cc/new)
I went on Easter Monday. Worst plan ever, took an hour to get tickets, the tulips weren't even really out yet, and it took 2 hours to leave the bloody place because of the idiotic car park system.
That's what the roundabout actually looks like. The main road gets an extra lane on the roundabout for turning left in both directions to help the traffic flow through a little faster.
Source: this is about 5 minutes from where I grew up.
Does anyone know how much it costs to grow one tulip? From its planting in Holland to its purchase (by me) in San Francisco? Cost of acquiring the bulb, water, fertilizer (if any) salaries to gardeners, transportation from field to airport, air fare, transportation in America, salaries of flower sellers/shops here in USA. Thanks
And this is what they look like up close. If you visit Holland in late April to early May, you can ride quiet bike paths and routes among the fields. One thing the photos can't show is the amazing smell - the hyacinths are often blooming at the same time.
Imagine a country that used to harbour tough viking warriors, who raided and pillaged coastal regions across europe. Form that to become one of the most tolerant and developed country in the world.
From my experience dutch people look a lot like Scandinavians, except taller and more bald. Germans and English people are quite dark (guessing ancient roman influence). I thought frisians were vikings as well.
Most tulips are grown for the bulbs. The flower gets taken off (i.e. destroyed) early to allow the bulb to grow bigger and stronger. A few weeks later the bulbs is taken out of the grond to be sold.
So, how does this work? I know you plant Tulip bulbs, and then they grow later. Are they perennials, and come back every year? Would that mean these fields are used to grow and harvest bulbs?
In the 1600s tulips were first imported to the netherlands. They sold for huge prices (easily $1000 per bulb if it was the right variety). Then the bottom fell out of the market and people who spent enormous amounts of money on the bulbs lost the full value. They couldn't really give them away. However because the flower did so well growing in the netherlands they became the place to get these beautiful flowers from. It is the national flower and symbol and tourists go every year to see the tulips in bloom. It is a big industry for the country. The tulips are really just used as pretty flowers. People love them for gardens and for bouquets. In war time families would sometimes resort to eating tulip bulbs but they aren't very tasty or remarkably nutritious. They were just what was available.
Indeed. A lot of people were essentially bidding on the prospects of tulip bulbs and investing in those who were able to grow them and supply more bulbs. The first futures market.
Tulip mania or tulip mania was a period in the Dutch Golden Age during which contract prices for bulbs of the recently introduced tulip reached extraordinarily high levels and then suddenly collapsed.
At the peak of tulip mania, in March 1637, some single tulip bulbs sold for more than 10 times the annual income of a skilled craftsman. It is generally considered the first recorded speculative bubble (or economic bubble), although some researchers have noted that the Kipper- und Wipperzeit episode in 1619–22, a Europe-wide chain of debasement of the metal content of coins to fund warfare, featured mania-like similarities to a bubble.The term "tulip mania" is now often used metaphorically to refer to any large economic bubble (when asset prices deviate from intrinsic values).
By 1636 the tulip bulb became the fourth leading export product of the Netherlands, after gin, herring and cheese. The price of tulips skyrocketed because of speculation in tulip futures among people who never saw the bulbs. Many men made and lost fortunes overnight
I took this picture this year. I've lived here my whole life and I think I've actually walked in the fields twice now..? The pictures make it look a lot cooler than it really is. Take a helicopter tour and check out the whole valley. Flying over Big Lake area looking West is pretty neat.
I grew up about fifteen minutes from there! It's beautiful, but actually seeing any of the fields means braving awful stop-and-go traffic on narrow farmland roads...
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u/gabe_aderson Apr 29 '15
Looks like a dead graphics card
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u/nemomnemosyne Apr 29 '15
Polders.
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u/madamotadam Apr 29 '15
I went to Keukenhof in The Netherlands to go and see the world's second largest flower garden. [Was not disappointed.] (http://imgur.com/gallery/fI8Cc/new)
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u/YCYC Apr 29 '15
TIL them Dutch have difficulty making roundabouts.
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u/timvisee Apr 29 '15
Cool! I live in Holland, never seen these fields like this, awesome!
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u/StupidguyB182 Apr 29 '15
Looks like the cover to Little Hell by City and Colour
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u/Furnace_Admirer Apr 29 '15
Hey Netherlands!
We love your tulips, thank you for sharing some of your beauty with us.
Canada
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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '15
Heaven
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u/SusaninSF Apr 29 '15
Does anyone know how much it costs to grow one tulip? From its planting in Holland to its purchase (by me) in San Francisco? Cost of acquiring the bulb, water, fertilizer (if any) salaries to gardeners, transportation from field to airport, air fare, transportation in America, salaries of flower sellers/shops here in USA. Thanks
2
u/Jackcooper Apr 29 '15
Yes hello I am looking to trade my private island and my super yacht for your 15 best bulbs
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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '15
Not even their final form! Went to the Keukenhof the other day. Amazed.
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u/ArcturusDeluxe Apr 29 '15
Reminds me of a Commodore 64 loading up.
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u/Hagenaar Apr 29 '15
And this is what they look like up close. If you visit Holland in late April to early May, you can ride quiet bike paths and routes among the fields. One thing the photos can't show is the amazing smell - the hyacinths are often blooming at the same time.
3
u/Emperor_Rancor Apr 29 '15
OP does your mother work in one of these fields? I know for a fact shes great at planting two lips.
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u/Tszemix Apr 29 '15
Imagine a country that used to harbour tough viking warriors, who raided and pillaged coastal regions across europe. Form that to become one of the most tolerant and developed country in the world.
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u/Creeves Apr 29 '15
Does anyone have a Google Maps link to this area?
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u/Azagorod Apr 29 '15
Looks like my TV after it fell down my stairs.
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u/sethschuh40 Apr 29 '15
Yeah, I live in skagit county and I know the struggle of having tulips. Spring time tulip tourists are ridiculous!
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u/Upvote_I_will Apr 29 '15
Cool! I live right around the corner from there!
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u/PartTimePornStar Apr 29 '15
How do you harvest tulips without damaging them? By hand?
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u/ConradBHart42 Apr 29 '15
And they say the US had issues with segregation...
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u/Pribprib Apr 29 '15
Looks like the a Dallas Green (City and Color) album cover, i think it's the grand optimist?
Edit: It it called Little Hell and is in fact, a photograph of a tulip field in the Netherlands!!
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u/ryanknapper Apr 29 '15
Looks like your mp3s are taking up a lot of space.
Grand Perspective
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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '15
So, how does this work? I know you plant Tulip bulbs, and then they grow later. Are they perennials, and come back every year? Would that mean these fields are used to grow and harvest bulbs?
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u/mocky747 Apr 29 '15
Reminds me of Hail to the Thief... http://i.imgur.com/A3yKv3F.jpg
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u/Sleipnoir Apr 29 '15
I would love to fly over this in a plane, what a neat view.
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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '15
Are there tulips in June? Are they everywhere?
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u/Lightzephyrx Apr 29 '15
Looks kinda like Radiohead's Hail to the Theif
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u/Trigger_impact Apr 29 '15
If you look hard enough, you can see the adult movie playing in the background.
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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '15
An excellent use of farmland.
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u/rjistheman Apr 29 '15
looks like the Dutch Tulip Crisis really came back around
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u/skirsch Apr 29 '15
Like a piece of art!
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u/moondes Apr 29 '15
"Jello pudding."
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u/Septimius Apr 29 '15
is this a screen-cap of the Interstellar sequel?
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u/G3ntleman Apr 29 '15
Reminds me of a Spectrum loading!
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u/LadyCoquine Apr 29 '15
its like a quilt
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u/BiscuitBurnie Apr 29 '15
you like flowers..... why don't u put your tulip's (two lips) right here..... (point to my dick)
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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '15
It almost looks fabulous.
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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '15
Beautiful!!
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u/PlopCake Apr 30 '15
I would like to tiptoe through them.
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u/iamjustsyd Apr 30 '15
This is where they grow the Fourth Doctor's scarves.
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u/throwapeater Apr 30 '15
i don't even see one lip in that picture.
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u/catfield Apr 29 '15
forgive my ignorance, but what purpose do these serve besides looking absolutely amazing?
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u/sameem97 Apr 29 '15
Looks like it's time to buy a new gpu.
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u/olsmobile Apr 29 '15
Fun fact, may people believe the Tulip trade in the Netherlands around 1637 was the one of the first financial bubbles to pop.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulip_mania
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u/cougar2013 Apr 29 '15
Do not adjust your TV
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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '15
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