Over 20,000 more tulip bulbs have been planted at Hever Castle in preparation for its third Tulip Celebrations event from 24 to 30 April 2019. Bulb master and holder of 25 Chelsea gold medals, Johnny Walkers has helped to select the tulip varieties at Hever for 2019, with the aim of extending the flowering season from early April through to mid May. Twenty two different varieties of tulips have been planted.
Free daily tours with the gardeners are available during the week as well as tulip floral arrangements in the castle.
“To me tulips are one of my favourite bulbs, I like bright in your face colours and where do you find a bulb that has all the colours of the rainbow?,” says head gardener Neil Miller. “My favourite tulip is Queen of the Night, it is a deep, deep purple, the closest you would get to black. A fab new tulip we have this year in the Italian Garden is called Inferno. It is an intense deep red with spring green coloured leaves and it flowers in April/May to a wonderful height of 45cm. We are planting it amongst deep blue pansies.”
In addition to the tulips, visitors to Hever Castle will also see a new development for 2019 as the attraction has opened up Park Wood which boasts a carpet of bluebells. This area of the grounds is usually closed to visitors but as soon as the bluebells bloom, the gates will be opened for visitors to take a magical walk through the woodland.
Other garden events planned for 2019 include Hever in Bloom, 25-30 June, and Autumn Colour from 1 October.
