Annual tulip festival returns to Long Island with 3 million blooms to pick
RIVERHEAD, Suffolk County -- A beloved tulip festival is back on Long Island with three million blooms across two family-owned farms.
It never gets old and it's the one place on a farm where the rapidly changing temperatures prolong the growing season.
"Not that I'm ready to give up the sunshine, but the longer the cold lasts, the longer we'll have our tulips," said Waterdrinker Family Farm Manager Megan Cox.
To everyone's delight, Waterdrinker Family Farm in Suffolk County has two locations in both Riverhead and Manorville with more than three million tulips currently in bloom.
And there's a color and shape for everyone.
From double petaled pink to silky lavender to spikey orange, we counted six different colors on a tulip.
And when the temperatures dipped recently, the smart beauties protected themselves, but as things warmed up, they became crowd pleasers.
Tulips come back each year, but for this collection to be different each year, millions must come up at the end of the season and then millions of new bulbs get re-planted in the fall.
Right now, visitors can come and pick the tulips at just $1 a piece. But on Mother's Day weekend, you can come for "dig days" where you pay an admission fee and dig as many of the bulbs from the Netherlands as you'd like.
"They are stunning, we have so many different varieties this year," Cox said.
But the best part is how you feel when you tip-toe through. Beyond the photo opportunities is a reassurance that what's soft can also be strong and return each year better than ever.
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