Keukenhof

Keukenhof is situated on the 15th-century hunting grounds of Slot Teylingen; it was the castle's kitchen garden (in Dutch: keukentuin), providing game, fruit and vegetables. The most noted inhabitant, and beneficiary of the garden was Countess Jacoba van Beieren (1401–1436).^[8] In 1638, the estate was purchased by Adriaen Maertensz Block, captain and governor of the Dutch East India Company. In 1641, he had a large manor house constructed, which he named Keukenhof, now known as Castle Keukenhof.^[9][10]

In 1857, Baron and Baroness Van Pallandt, at the time owners of the estate, tasked landscape architect Jan David Zocher and his son Louis Paul Zocher, both designers of Amsterdam's Vondelpark, to restructure the park and grounds around the castle. Those parks, designed in English style, remain the foundations for the gardens.^[11][12]

Keukenhof, the park as it is now known, was established in 1949 by a consortium of bulb growers and flower exporters to showcase their products and support the export industry. The garden opened to the public in 1950 and received 200,000 visitors in its first year.^[13] It operates under a charitable foundation of Count Carel De Gaaf van Lynden.

Panoramic view of the Keukenhof

Each autumn, 40 gardeners plant the 7 million bulbs, donated to the park by over 100 growers.^[14] Planting starts in early October and is usually completed by 5 December, around Sinterklaas.^[15] The flowerbeds are synchronised to the different bulb flowerings to ensure blooms throughout the duration of park's eight-week opening.^[16] To ensure continuous bloom, three bulbs are planted in each location. The shallowest bulb will bloom first for three weeks, followed by the subsequent layers.^[17]

In addition to the tulip gardens, Keukenhof features a variety of other gardens. The English landscape garden features winding paths and surprise see-through vistas. The walled area of the historical features archival varieties. In the Nature Garden, shrubs and perennials are combined with bulb plants. The Japanese Country Garden is a non-traditional garden in a natural environment.^[14] Four pavilions house rotating displays and flower exhibits.

Visitors

In 2017, Keukenhof received 1.4 million visitors.^[21] 20% of the visitors are Dutch, while 40% are from Germany, the UK and Belgium.^{[citation needed]} The number of visitors from the USA (10%) and China (8%) has grown over the years.

More information Year, Visitors ...

Year	Visitors		Year	Visitors
2008	835,000		2015	1,175,000
2009	850,000		2016	1,143,000
2010	800,000		2017	1,400,000[22]
2011	884,000		2018	1,400,000[23]
2012	875,000		2019	1,500,000[24]
2013	849,000		2020	0[25]
2014	1,020,000		2021	30,000[26]

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Visitor breakdown by nationality for 2019 season:^[27][28]

More information Country, % visitors ...

Country	% visitors
the Netherlands	20%
Germany	15%
United States	10%
France
UK
China	4%

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Keukenhof falls under a charitable foundation of Count Carel De Graaf van Lynden (Stichting Graaf Carel van Lynden). As of 1 January 2016, the foundation owns both Keukenhof and Castle Keukenhof plus the surrounding estate.^[29]

The Keukenhof does not receive government subsidies; revenues are generated from ticket sales and the food and beverage licensees on the premises. In 2019, Keukenhof generated €25 million in revenue.^[30] In 2020, as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and closures to contain it, the park was shut from its scheduled opening day, 21 March until its scheduled closing date, 10 May, costing it an estimated $25 million in revenues.^[31]

• National Tulip Day, opening of the tulip season in Amsterdam (January)