Tulip Mania

Tulip Mania
            “Tulips!” I said to my son on a recent Saturday. “We have to go to the windmill and check the tulips, Seanie!”
            Every year around mid-March I suddenly remember that if we don’t check the tulip garden in Golden Gate Park, we might miss the glorious annual planting. The gardeners choose different colors and planting patterns each year, and it’s always a treat to see.
            I worried that we might be too late, but as we drove up and saw so many people at the edge of the garden, I knew we hadn’t missed it.
            Plum blossoms, magnolias, daffodils, tulips, cherry blossoms, and dahlias. These are just some of the players in the annual parade of flowers we watch for in San Francisco starting from late winter.
            Most of these appear here and there around the city so we’re reminded of them randomly as we’re out and about.
            The tulips are the exception, with the windmill garden being the grand spot for enjoying a dazzling display.
            I feature hikes from the archives to celebrate each flower in season, but just made it under the wire for the tulips this time. If you don’t happen to catch a favorite flower during peak blossom time, enjoy other flowers. The ones you missed will bloom again next year!
            This week’s Hike Notes from the archives, Queen Wilhelmina Garden, brings readers to the windmill at the far western side of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, which features an artful display of tulips every spring. 
 
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This week’s Hike Notes from the Archives:
Hike Notes 129: Queen Wilhelmina Garden