Automated Tulip Tractor Reminds Us of German Halftracks

Just kidding, this isn't a tractor beam, but it is a tractor unlike anything we've ever seen before, designed specifically to do one very unique job, which is to harvest tulips.

Funny thing, these deceptively simple looking flowers. They are now among the most common flowers, but they used to be the most sought-after plants on the planet. Most sources suggest they were introduced by an ambassador from the Holy Roman Empire to the house of Suleyman the Magnificent, the most famous of Ottoman emperors. After a while, they became so popular with Europe's rich that the bulbs were traded using a sort of primitive stock exchange. Prices rose so high that, gram for gram, some were more expensive than gold.

The tulip tractor

But enough ancient history for today, let's look at the tractor we found. It's got a narrow track at the back and very tall wheels at the front. We think those same types of wheels are used by mud dragsters, but that's another story.

With this arrangement, this tractor is technically a halftrack, which kind of reminds us of the famous Sd.Kfz. 251 half-track carrier that the Germans used throughout WW2. It's a bad comparison, we know, especially since Holland is one of the first countries in Europe that Hitler invaded in May 1940.

The tulip machine works a bit like a giant pusher lawn mower. It has two sets of 1.5 meter blades that spin and "head" the tulips. If they don't do this, the plans will spend all of their energy into making seeds, which is not what they want.

So next time your girlfriends say they want flowers, show them this clip of the giant lawn mower and see if they still think tulips are pretty.