Spring in Düsseldorf - 2021

The variety in flowers in nature always amazes me. Majority of the flowers in Germany were alien to me. Except roses, I guess roses can be found everywhere in the world. 

This year due to travel restrictions and work-from-home, we explored Düsseldorf in spring like never before! Two more things helped. One we bought a car a couple of years ago & second I joined Instagram 😄. Up to last year we would visit a few parks in spring to admire the magnolias or the cherry blossoms but this year we planned special trips an hour away just to admire some specific flowers. The inspiration came from looking at photos on Instagram.

Spring season here lasts from March to May. Every month nature (with the help of hardworking farmers & gardeners) creates displays of flowers of different colors, shapes and sizes. In this post, I am writing the timeline and places where we captured some gorgeous flowers. Every year timing of the bloom and location could be a bit different. Hundreds of different flowers bloom around the city, especially some wild flowers and the small colorful flowering plants which the government plants around the city e.g., at street corners near the signals but the main attention seekers are these select few.

• February
• Crocuses
• March
• Daffodils
• April
• Cherry Blossoms
• Magnolias
• Tulips
• May
• Wisterias
• Bluebells
• Raps 

Towards the end of February, crocuses start popping up across the various parks and green patches. One of the best places to see them is Rheinpark. Especially the place "Das Blaue Band" which is specially created for the crocuses in the park (seen above).

Soon after the crocuses, daffodils start appearing everywhere. Literally everywhere! Every park has them so no special place to spot them.

EKŌ-Haus

Kaiserteich

Rheingärtchen

Behind the Breuninger mall

Every year more and more lovely spots are created or due to social media become well known in Düsseldorf. Some notable locations are the EKŌ-Haus, Zietenstrasse, Rheingärtchen, the lake in Südpark, Am Kirschbaumwäldchen, behind the Breuninger mall & Kaiserteich.

All big parks like the Hofgarten, Volksgarten & Nordpark have a few stunning magnolia trees. When they are in full bloom, they attract quite a crowd. This year my favorite spot was in front of the Radisson Blu Scandinavia Hotel in Karl-Arnold-Platz. Here two big white and pink magnolia trees are next to each other tucked away from the crowd frenzy.

Next is the tulip mania! If you do not want to make a trip to the Netherlands for tulips then a great alternative is the farm in Grevenbroich. Do check their FB page for the opening timings.

Tulips can be found in small quantities at many places around the city. This year the most notable 'effort' was in the Rheingärtchen.

Next are the wisterias! I spotted them in yellow and lilac shades in Nordpark. These vines make for a great backdrop and are quite popular for photoshoots. 

Different colors of bluebell flowers 

This year's highlight for me was the blue bells forest in Hückelhoven 50 kms away from Düsseldorf. A long patch of the forest on both sides of the walking path is completely covered in bluebells. It looks magical. A video of the place is on my Instagram page.

We had seen Raps fields at many places in the countryside while traveling to other places but never actually stopped to take photos. However, this time, I was really inspired by a post on Instagram of this place in Ratingen-Homberg. It was a sight to behold to see vast fields covered in yellow flowers. Unlike all the above flowers, these are not for decoration purpose. The seeds of this plant are used for making cooking oil (similar to mustard).

As this year's spring season comes to an end, I am now looking forward to the roses & lavenders in summer. Most of the flowers above either have no smell or a very light scent for a very few hours. I do miss the pleasant fragrance of common flowers in India like the jasmine or frangipani. I am still looking for flowers here with a nice fragrance. If you know any, do let me know!

Which are your favorite places to spot beautiful flowers?