Every spring, tulip farms in the Netherlands paint the landscape with bold colours.

The country is known for its flowers. Two-thirds of the world's cut flowers were grown in the Netherlands in 2005, worth $US4.2 billion, according to the US Department of Agriculture.

Red, pink, yellow and purple are favourites among the Dutch and tourists.

The area around Lisse, in west central Netherlands, is now covered in fields of tulips. They are grown primarily for bulbs, but some gardens are of the pick-your-own variety.