Mount Vernon, Washingtion -- Skagit Acres, Field Barn
It is a little earlier than some years, but it is time for the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. This card was purchased at the Pop-Up Store at Tulip Town. The card is printed by Lantern Press, Seattle, Washington and has the title and image number 130704 at upper left corner on the reverse. There is also a “printed on recycled paper, non-toxic ink – made in the USA” statement on the center line on the reverse.
We had not visited the tulip fields for about 4 years; however, past experiences suggested that it would be wise to wear boots if we planned to walk out into the fields. The day we went it was cloudy with some sprinkles of rain as we were driving, but the rain had stopped by the time we got to the fields.
A few of the tulips were two toned
The founder of Tulip Town, Tom DeGoede emigrated from the Netherlands to Canada in 1956. He and his brothers, Hank and John, later moved to Skagit County, Washington where they, and brother-in-law John Conijn, owned and operated DeGoede Bulb Farm.. Tom and his wife Jeannette, started their own farm in 1983 and named it Tulip Town. In addition to tulips they also raised Dutch Iris, colchicums, gladiolas, alliums, daffodils, and cover crops. They began offering tours and selling bouquets at their farm and the idea for a tulip festival began. Originally there were 4 tulip farms participating in the festival which officially began in 1984.
Tom and Jeannette retired and sold the farm in 2017. After Tom passed away in 2019, Jeannette wrote a book: "Tulip Town Remembered" and dedicated it to him. A review of the book states: "Readers will hear Jeannette's voice throughout the book as she tells their story. It is the story of America--immigrants coming here, working hard, having a dream and fulfilling that dream." The book is available from Seaport Books, in LaConner, WA.
Today only two growers from the original 4 are still in
business, they are Tulip Town and RoozenGaarde. Bob and I have tried to alternate between these two. RoozenGaarde has several planned beds, a gift
shop, and large fields of brilliantly colored tulips. Even though it appears to be larger than
Tulip Town, it is far more crowded. Both
were founded by Dutch immigrants and both have a large windmill, entrance fees,
ample parking spaces, and port-a-potties.
Tulip Town Windmill with display
Besides being slightly smaller, there are some other differences; Tulip Town has one main display that centers around the large windmill and a stream, allows dogs, has a covered pavilion with a beer/wine garden, a small snack bar with some pastries and a few lunch items. They also have a “Merch” store and a Pop-Up store, a place to order bulbs, an indoor display, and potted tulips on sale. It is usually less crowded, and has tractor-trolleys to ride in if one does not wish to risk mud and walk around in the fields. We wore our hiking boots, did not step into any mud, and had a delightful slow walk around taking lots of pictures. RoozenGaarde does not allow dogs, and has many more designed beds, also has a café, and plants and bulbs for sale.
Tulip Town Tractor Trolley. There were three operating and one in reserve.
This row had mixed colors
Some of the rows had single colored tulips, others had mixed colors. As can be seen it is still early in the season and some bulbs were just opening or not yet open.
For additional information, see:
https://www.hawthornefh.com/obituary/anthony-degoede
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2019/jun/05/
https://tulipfestival.org/news/tulip-town-remembered-by-founder-jeannette-degoede-for-sale-now/
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