Niagara-on-the-Lake is getting a Dutch makeover as TASC Tulip Pick Farm prepares to open doors at its first permanent location.
Started five years ago by Frank Boendermaker, TASC’s pick farm originated in Fenwick, Ont., and is finally calling NOTL its permanent home.
“It really fits well here — with the wine, the tulips, the downtown area, all the beautiful hotels and restaurants. We’re thrilled to be here,” Boendermaker’s wife Jill McCourt told The Lake Report.
With an official opening date of April 30, the start of tulip season in Ontario, TASC’s new farm, located on Line 3 Road, features 135 different varieties of tulip.
“Most people don’t realize when they go to a tulip pick farm, they just think of the same ones they see in the grocery store — but we’ll have so many more,” McCourt said.
TASC wasn’t always such a large-scale operation. Before planting roots in NOTL for its fifth year, the flower bulb importing company had smaller farms in Fenwick and Ridgeville for prior tulip seasons.
Boendermaker immigrated to the U.S. from the Netherlands when he was 19, bringing his knowledge of tulip-growing with him.
In 2020, he and his wife began business in Canada with a five-acre farm as a way of getting people outside during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We found how important it was for people to connect with nature during that time and how much people enjoyed it,” McCourt said.
With the farm’s new permanent location, they will be able to run several events for the community — including a second grow season in August.
The late summer season will feature sunflowers, gladiolas, dahlias and more.
“We want to show people that there’s a lot of other bulbs that they can put in their own gardens to have a burst of colour,” McCourt said.
Throughout the upcoming season, the farm plans to host several other special events, including paint nights, jazz evenings and wine tastings with NOTL wineries, McCourt said.
Since moving to NOTL, the farm has partnered with companies and people in town, including Juliet Dunn and the TD Niagara Jazz Festival, for Sip, Savour and Sax nights on Wednesdays.
TASC is also supporting NOTL businesses with food trucks on site, with vendors including Cheese Secrets, Sweets & Swirls and more.
“We also have someone doing some Dutch food,” McCourt said.
McCourt is excited to welcome a new crowd of people to the farm.
“Niagara-on-the-Lake welcomed us with open arms. It’s been phenomenal to work with (the town),” she said.
TASC’s NOTL tulip farm is located at 1173 Line 3 Rd. Tickets for the pick farm are available online at tascllc.com. Parking is free and the farm is accessible by bus.
