Tulip festival should reach peak bloom later than years past

Ottawa's tulips may be a little late, but they won't be missing in action as the Canadian Tulip Festival kicks off this weekend.

Though the cold spring has delayed their arrival — the opposite dynamic than in some recent years — the woman who oversees the tulip beds said there will be plenty of blooms to visit during its opening days.

"This spring, I think we'll be about a week late [compared to normal]," said Tina Liu, a landscape architect with the National Capital Commission.

Some blooms have already started to peek through and Liu said the rest are coming.

"You can actually see the tips and some colours. They are coming out," she said. "There is still another two or three weeks [of blooming]. It is actually good for us."

She estimates their early-season tulips, which make up about 20 per cent of their beds, will be in full bloom this weekend.

The NCC has a "bloom indicator" tool where you can track how the tulips are doing.

Cold can help

She said the cold spring can actually be better for the plants and the festival.   

"The cooler weather is actually beneficial to the bulbs. The lower temperature actually lets them grow longer," she said.  

She said even this winter's heavy snow helped.

"It worked as a good blanket for the tulips."

The festival officially begins on Friday and runs until Victoria Day.

Liu said they have been adapting in recent years to try to ensure that whatever the weather, the tulips will be in bloom for some time.  

"For the past few years, we have seen a change in the climate pattern and have adjusted accordingly," she said. "We try to stagger them to have a different bloom time."