More than 20 varieties of tulips are now blooming in about 100 locations in the Lviv community: in parks, squares, flower beds, and on the streets. Over two years, the Netherlands has donated more than 200,000 tulip bulbs to Lviv.
During his visit to Lviv, the Consul of Ukraine in the Netherlands joined the “Lviv is a City of Spring” contest and assured that tulips will bloom in Lviv next year.
Emil de Sevren Jacket, Chairman of the Amsterdam-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Honorary Consul of Ukraine in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, said that Dutch residents and business representatives have been supporting Ukrainians for years.
“These tulips are a sign of our friendship and commitment to Ukraine. This is a gift from the Dutch business community. We know that Ukrainians, unfortunately, cannot come to us, so we decided to bring a piece of the Netherlands here, because it is an important national symbol of our country,” says Emile de Sevren Jacket.
In total, 450 thousand tulips were donated to Ukraine this year. In addition to Lviv, they also bloom in Kyiv, Bucha, Kherson, Dnipro, and Odesa. Next year, they hope to increase the number of tulips to be donated to Ukraine to one million, so that more people can enjoy them.
“I will take personal responsibility to make sure that next year you have 100 thousand or more tulips again,” added Emile de Sevres Jacket.
One of the sponsors is Yuriy Petrychko, the owner of a tulip trading company. He is from Lviv region. The man says the idea to give tulips to Ukrainians was born two years ago. At first, they decided to send small batches of flowers, and later increased the volume.
“We are very glad that our tulips are in good hands, everything is done very professionally, the colors are distributed by location, and most importantly, these flowers make people happy, give them smiles, and this makes us happy,” says Yuriy Petrychko.
Lubomyr Zubach, Deputy Mayor of Lviv, said that the Dutch Chamber of Commerce and Industry has been donating tulips to Lviv for two years. In total, the city received more than 200,000 tulips, which were planted in various locations in the community.
“We are very grateful to our international colleagues for this gift. Lviv residents have already fallen in love with these tulips, they enjoy this beauty. The flowers also please our soldiers who come from the front line and return to their families. They say that beauty will save the world, and I think this beauty will help all of us support the Armed Forces and defeat the enemy,” said Zubach.
According to the Department of Ecology and Natural Resources of Lviv, tulips are blooming in hundreds of small and large locations in the Lviv community.
“I’m glad that the residents are well-received, take pictures and do not destroy the flowers. This is a kind of “tulip therapy” for our city and its residents.
This year’s city day is held under the slogan “Lviv is a city of spring”. And tulips enhance our celebration. To further engage residents and guests in contemplating and enjoying the flowers, we created a flower map of the city where residents can view all the locations and not miss the blooming of flowers,” said Halyna Mykytchak, Head of the Department of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Lviv City Council.
The city’s tourism department adds that blooming locations attract tourists and help create new routes around the city.
“We invited Lviv residents and guests to take part in the Lviv – City of Spring contest: take photos and videos at the most interesting locations. In this way, we want to fill social media with bright pictures, as this is an important part of our mental stability. We need bright colors and to observe the flowering,” said Khrystyna Lebed, Head of the Tourism Department of Lviv City Council.
The Ambassador of Ukraine to the Netherlands also joined the contest “Lviv – City of Spring”. The contest runs until April 24, and the winners will be announced on City Day.