ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Mother’s Day is coming up next weekend and if you are looking for a way to spend the holiday, the 75th annual Albany Tulip Festival will be in full bloom.
The festival will be held on Saturday, May 13, and Sunday, May 14 in Washington Park in Albany.
“Beautiful. They’ve finally planted them for tulip fest, we’re getting ready for that. The energy is just nice,” stated parkgoer, Taylor Bock.” “It’s a wonderful time, it’s a beautiful day. Why wouldn’t we come out to downtown Albany?” said park enthusiast, Janel Mirel.
Contrary to what visitors may think, the flowers are planted months before spring begins. Deputy Commissioner of the Department of General Services, Frank Zeoli, says a lot of care goes into how the flowers are planted at the park.
“The tulips get planted actually in the fall. It’s a two-month process. It usually starts in October and can go through December. Our city gardener actually does designs. She knows exactly what’s going into each bed. She knows what the bloom time is going to be, when they are going to come up,” explained Zeoli.
Zeoli says these tulips refer back to Albany’s heritage. “There’s a variety of tulips. We get our tulips actually from the Netherlands. They actually do come where tulips come from,” described Zeoli.
The tulip festival features more than just flowers, with a variety of events to enjoy. The celebration will begin the second weekend of May. “There’s food, entertainment, vendors, crafts, learning experiences, giveaways depending on where you’re going, and then of course you got the beautiful scenery,” said Zeoli.
According to the City of Albany Office of Cultural Affairs, the Tulip Festival is rooted in Albany’s Dutch Heritage. Nearly one hundred artisans will be selling handmade crafts, and the event will include food trucks, a fine arts show, a KidZone family fun destination, three stages for live entertainment, and over 248,000 tulips in 175 different varieties.
Since it began in 1949, the Mother’s Day weekend celebration has become one of the Northeast’s biggest early events. The festival is free and open to the public.
