1,000 watt BULBS
Bold, bright – and sometimes brash – tulips illuminate spring like nothing else
APACKET of ten tulip bulbs seldom costs more than a fiver, unless you go for something out of the ordinary, i n which case you would be lucky to get change from a £20 note. Many of us might hesitate at paying quite so much for a handful of bulbs, but even at that price they are still affordable to most gardeners.
It’s all a far cry from the early 17th Century when only the well-heeled could afford to snap up these bulbs. During the peak of tulipomania, a period considered to be the world’s first financial bubble, bulbs would change hands for absurd sums.
In 1636, a ‘Viceroy’ was exchanged in Holland for a long list of goods, including 12 sheep, four oxen, 1,000lb of cheese, a man’s suit and a bed. In January 1637, a single ‘Semper Augustus’ sold for 10,000 guilders – the equivalent of the annual salary paid to a skilled craftsman.
There’s less fervour made about tulips these days, yet they are essential for adding colour at the end of spring. While earlier-flowering bulbs tend to be a little on the tame side, things step up a gear from April when tulips make their spirited appearance.
Flowers come i n many shapes and sizes, and are available in a range of vibrant shades. I can understand why some gardeners love multicoloured tulips, although I find many of them garish. ‘Carnaval de Nice’, ‘Estella Rijnveld’ and ‘ Flaming Parrot’, with frilled red and yellow petals, are three offenders. ‘Spring Green’ is more to my taste, its ivory flowers subtly marked with a touch of green.
WHILE most spring bulbs can be planted any time from late summer until early winter, November is the best time to plant tulips – bulbs don’t form roots until the weather turns colder, and there’s less chance of them being hit by the fungal disease tulip fire.
Tulips were first cultivated by gardeners in the Ottoman Empire, where new varieties were developed for the ruling Sultan. The botanical name, tulipa, derives from the Turkish word tulbent, or turban, due to the shape of the flowers.
Tulips arrived during the 1500s in Holland, where botanists bred novel varieties that were highly desirable. A Dutch craze for tulips in the 1630s was embraced by the whole of Europe, with bulbs even being traded on the London Stock Exchange. Trading was buoyant until the market for them collapsed in February 1637.
Today, more than 2,000 varieties are available in Britain, with the earliest coming into flower in March and the latest blooming towards the end of May – the majority flaunt their stuff in between. Ranging in height from 4in to 2ft, tulips have single or double flowers that vary in shape from cups and bowls to goblets.
As there are so many tulips, botanists have split them into 15 different groups based on the characteristics of their flowers. For example, there’s a double early-flowering group, single late group and Darwin hybrids, housing those with large, oval flowers on tall stems.
Rembrandts are adorned with streaks and stripes, similar to those popular during tulipomania. My favourites have long been lily-flowered tulips, a group whose elegant, goblet-shaped blooms boast pointed, swept-back petals. Introduced in 1942, ‘White Triumphator’ has snowy flowers on 2ft stalks in mid-May, while ‘Ballerina’ is slightly shorter, with glowing orange, scented flowers. For my money, the finest of all is primrose-yellow ‘West Point’.
Tulips prefer a sunny spot with well drained soil. The general rule when planting bulbs is to dig holes two to three times their own depth, but with tulips, aim to plant them 6in to 8in deep to protect from fungal diseases. Space bulbs 2in to 4in apart and add some sharp grit to the base of holes to improve drainage.
Shorter varieties are ideal in rock gardens or at the front of beds, while taller varieties look fabulous when planted in drifts through a border – keep things easy on the eye by sticking to two or three colours that complement each other. For a spring bedding display, interplant with wallflowers or sweet Williams.
Anyone strapped for space can raise tulips in large pots filled with multi-purpose compost. Most will flower poorly in their second season if they remain in situ, so plant immediately into the ground when flowers fade. Another option is to allow plants to die back completely. Then lift, dry and store bulbs in a cool, dry place until autumn.