Tulips are a beautiful, classic favorite and have been for centuries – right from back in the 1630’s when tulip mania erupted.
Having Dutch blood myself I find the Tulip and it’s history incredibly interesting. Tulips have long held a significant role in Dutch history and culture ever since they were introduced to the Netherlands from the Ottoman Empire in the mid-1500s. The novelty of the new flower made it widely sought after and therefore fairly pricey.
After a time, the tulips contracted a non-fatal virus known as Mosaic, which didn’t kill the tulip population but altered them causing flames of color to appear upon the petals. The color patterns came in a wide variety, increasing the rarity of an already unique flower. So strong was the love affair that prices for the recently introduced bulbs reached extraordinary heights according to how their virus alterations were valued or desired. Everyone began to deal in bulbs, some single tulip bulbs sold for more than 10 times the annual income of a skilled craftsman. It could never have lasted and this 3-year economic bubble collapsed suddenly and plunged the Dutch economy into a severe crisis that lasted for many years.
We are lucky enough to get tulips during autumn right through until early summer in New Zealand because our clever growers grow indoors. Modern day Tulips are an affordable, accessible option for flower lovers. Tulips are easy and reliable, they open and change every day you have them, this changeability is part of their long-standing appeal
Essential cut Tulip care tips:
- Tulips don’t need a lot of water at the bottom of the vase, a couple of centimetres is efficient. Their stems can and often do mould if you put the water too high.
- Tulips drink a lot so make sure you keep topping their water up every day or two.
- Tulips grow after they are cut! So you sometimes need to keep trimming them to prevent them from drooping. I love that cascading look as they open and change daily but here are two other ways of preventing tulip droop: Swap your vase for a taller one for support once they start to grow too big for the original vase you chose. Insert, then remove a pin through the stem at the base of the head of your tulip, then they will grow towards the sky. Easy!