Winter is nearly over and in three to four weeks, spring will take over. Start to walk around the Puget Sound, Washington area and you’ll see evidence of this as you encounter surrounding trees nearly in bloom.
Flowers for the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, including the tulips that usually bloom in mid-April, are getting a head start this year due to the warm temperatures affecting the region. In fact, this past February has been the warmest on record, causing a change in the time of bloom for the flowers.
The Skagit Valley Tulip festival in the Skagit Valley of Washington state is celebrated yearly from April 1st until April 30th. A week into the month long event is the usual time flowers are expected to bloom, although the show can be put on hold until mid-April during cooler winters. This year, however, the early arrival of the buds, will be great news for tourists who plan to visit during the weekends.”We will open the 27th of March with lots of bloom. People who come early will have a beautiful showing of tulips,” states Jeanette DeGoede with Tulip Town. In the past, tulips have also bloomed early, although in those cases, only a maximum of two colors were displayed. This year, visitors can expect a welcomed surprise, as DeGoede expects to have at least 30 types of tulips in bloom. “This is the first time we have experienced so many varieties that will show color (in late March),” she states.
This comes in just in time for Easter weekend, as masses of families will make their way to the festival. Thus, it is best advised by DeGoede to go earlier rather than later since warm weather shortens the life span of the flowers, while cooler weather extends it by essentially acting like a refrigerator.Although DeGoede worries that unaware tourists might this miss this wonderful occurrence, organizers are still expecting a large turnout. Either way, the tulips will showcase their magnificent colors, despite extreme heat or heavy rain. The only exception is hail, which could potentially destroy the blooms.
