Baby Animals and Blooms at Maris Farms

Spring farm festivals can sound interchangeable — flowers, photos, snacks, maybe a petting zoo. But Maris Farms in Buckley has built this one into a full-day outing, and that’s the real story here. Baby Animals and Blooms is back for 2026, with the next public dates landing Saturday, May 2, and Sunday, May 3, then returning May 9 and May 10. If you were working off a vague calendar blurb, the useful update is simple: this is a timed spring event with tickets, themed weekends, tulip fields, and a lot more than just looking at flowers. ### What is this event, exactly? It’s Maris Farms’ spring festival — a seasonal counterpart to the Buckley farm’s better-known fall attractions. The core pitch is baby animal encounters plus tulip fields, but the event page makes clear that the farm is packaging it as a broader family day outdoors, not a quick flower stop. That includes play areas, food, shopping, and room for kids to roam. ### When can you actually go? For 2026, the public dates are April 25–26, May 2–3, and May 9–10, with hours listed as 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Since today is Friday, May 1, the next opening is this weekend — Saturday, May 2, and Sunday, May 3 — followed by the final weekend on May 9 and May 10. That matters because some community listings compress content. ### What do you get beyond the tulips? Turns out quite a bit. Maris says admission includes baby animal encounters with goats, lambs, piglets, and ducklings, plus 40-plus farm attractions. There’s also a Maker’s Market, food and treats on site, and dedicated photo spots in the tulip fields. So the value proposition is less “walk through blooms for 20 minutes” and more “let the kids burn off energy for a few hours.” ### What’s special about this weekend? Each weekend has its own theme. April 25–26 was Princesses & Pirates. This coming weekend, May 2–3, is Superheroes. The final weekend, May 9–10, is tied to Mother’s Day. Maris also teased “two brand new additions to the farm” in its event guide, though the broad takeaway is the themed programming — the farm wants repeat visits, not just one pass through the tulips. ### Do you need tickets ahead of time? Basically, yes. Maris says Baby Animals and Blooms has limited capacity, and if a date sells out online, there will not be extra tickets waiting at the farm. That’s the practical catch for families making a last-minute plan. This is not framed as a show-up-whenever community fair — it’s a capacity-managed event. ### Why does this matter for Maris Farms? Because it shows how much the farm has expanded beyond its old identity. A few years ago, local coverage described Maris as mostly a fall destination known for its corn maze and haunted woods. Now the spring season is its own branded attraction, with recurring weekends, themed programming, and separate ticketing. That’s a real shift from “farm business.” ### So who is this really for? Families with young kids are the obvious target, but also anyone within day-trip range of Seattle or Tacoma who wants a spring outing that’s more structured than a public park and less formal than a festival downtown. The mix is the draw — baby animals for kids, tulips for photos, and enough built-in activities that parents are not inventing the day as they go. ### Bottom line If you’re thinking about going, treat Baby Animals and Blooms as a ticketed spring farm day with a narrow calendar window — not an open-ended tulip stop. This weekend’s dates are May 2–3, the final run is May 9–10, and the smart move is to check availability before you get in the car.