62nd Keukenhof Flower Exhibition Officially Opened Today

LISSE, Netherlands, March 23, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Mrs. Bettina Wulff, spouse of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, has officially opened the 62nd edition of the world famous international flower exhibition Keukenhof. Accompanied by her husband Mr. Christian Wulff and the Dutch Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, as well as many other dignitaries, she baptized a newly bred, beautiful colored tulip, named after her.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110323/NY70434 )

From March 24 to May 20, 2011 the focus will be on Holland's eastern neighbors with the theme "Germany: Land of Poets and Philosophers." The most popular draw at this year's Keukenhof is sure to be the flower bulb mosaic of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.

25,000 Tulips, planted nearby the real "Brandenburger Tor," will be in full bloom when Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, the Dutch Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Maxima will be in Berlin during an official state visit in September of 2011.

"The Park is thankfully already in splendid shape. Most of the lawns are green and a great many bulbs are blooming," said Mr. Walter Jansen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Keukenhof.

Van Gogh Tulip

World famous painter Vincent van Gogh also got his own tulip, about 120 years after his death. On Monday evening, March 21st,  Mr. Axel Ruger, director of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, baptized this special tulip.  The color of the Van Gogh tulip is red-brown. The cultivator of the bulb is J.S. Pennings-De Bilt from Breezand, the Netherlands. The Vincent van Gogh tulip grows to be approx. 50 to 60 cm (approx. 20 inches) in length. The baptism, in cooperation with the Keukenhof, coincided with the opening of the exhibit "Van Gogh in Bloom" at the Van Gogh Museum. Van Gogh never painted tulips, but he loved flowers.

Keukenhof was originally the herb garden ("keuken" means kitchen in Dutch) of the Countess of Holland, Jacoba van Beyeren (1401-1436). In 1840, the horticultural architects Zocher, a father and son, designed the park that forms the basis of the current Keukenhof. They also designed the noted Vondelpark in Amsterdam.

The Keukenhof Gardens, open to the public from March 24 to May 20, can be visited daily from 8:00am to 7:30pm (ticket office open until 6:00pm). Entrance fee is 14,50 Euro (approx. US $20) for adults and 7,00 Euro (approx. US $9) for children. Keukenhof can be reached by train and bus, or by car and combination tickets are available when traveling by bus from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

The annual flower parade from Noordwijk to Haarlem, the largest in Holland, will take place on Saturday, April 16th.

SOURCE Keukenhof Gardens