Fw: The Netherlands in May 

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-----Original Message-----
From: Bill Bannister <bannister.cb@hotmail.com>
Date: Fri, 4 Mar 2011 21:55:22
Subject: FW: The Netherlands in May

Thought you might like this. We'll call soon . Carol & Bill






The Netherlands in May
At first glance, it looks like a giant child armed with a box of crayons has been
set loose upon the landscape. Vivid stripes of purple, yellow, red, pink, orange
and green make up A glorious patchwork. Yet far from being a child's sketchbook,
this is, in fact, the northern Netherlands in the middle of tulip season. The Dutch
landscape in May is a kaleidoscope of color as the tulips burst into life. The bulbs
are planted in late October and early November. More than three billion tulips are grown
each year and two-thirds of the vibrant blooms are exported, mostly to the U.S. and Germany.



Their dazzling colors are thanks to the years in the 17th century when tulip mania
swept the globe and the most eye-catching specimens changed hands for
a small fortune. But like a Rainbow, this colorful landscape is a short-lived
phenomenon. When the flowers are gone, the land will be cultivated for a
rather more mundane crop of vegetables. The Netherlands
produce more than nine million bulbs a year.