The Bloom Tulip Festival in Armstrong will be ending two full weeks early due to the scorching heat. "The extreme heat has not been kind to our fields, and the tulips are getting crispy," the festival said in an Instagram post on Monday. This was the second year the festival was held in the North Okanagan after organizers moved to the region after hosting similar festivals in the Fraser Valley.
"If you can visit us today, please do! There is still some color, and the entire field is open for u-pick," said the post. People who are holding tickets for future dates will be contacted by email. The festival opened on May 4 and was scheduled to run until May 28, with more than a half million bulbs being brought in from the Netherlands and planted.
B.C. is currently experiencing temperatures 10 C to 15 C above normal for this time of year. "Due to the record-breaking heat, organizers of the Bloom Flower Festivals have made the difficult decision to make today the last day of the Bloom Tulip Festival in Armstrong. Unfortunately, the unseasonably warm weather has caused the tulips to perish much earlier than expected," organizers said in a press release.
"We are disappointed, but we want to assure everyone who pre-purchased tickets that they will be reimbursed in the coming days and that the festival will be back in 2024," said Alexis Szarek.
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