Vibrant, exotic, and endlessly variable, tulips are most certainly the symbols of spring. Their elegant forms and stunning colors make for the best display whether in a flower bouquet or your home gardens. Tulips need a lot of care when growing. So, if you’re planning on adding tulips to your gardens, be prepared to give them the necessary care and attention. Since tulips are the stars of spring, you’ll want to plant them early in the autumn to get blooms in spring. For growing tulips, all you need are tulip bulbs and the knowledge of when and how to plant them. While you can easily get tulip bulbs for sale from many nurseries, learning how to grow them is a bit challenging. But, before you start buying your bulbs, let us take a look at the different types of tulips classified according to their flower type, size, and blooming period.
Single Tulips
Elegant, and beautiful, single Tulips are named so for their simple bulbs with six petals. They have long stems and many different sizes and colors. Some single Tulips bloom early in the spring and are also called single early tulips while others bloom a little late and are known as single late tulips depending.
Double Tulips
As the name suggests, these tulips have double petals and look quite similar to peonies in bloom. The colors, shapes, and sizes vary but these flowers are excellent for bedding and grow well in pots and containers. The early varieties bloom with flowers like daffodils and hyacinths in early spring.
Lily-Flowering Tulips
Lily-Flowering tulips stand out from other tulip varieties due to their distinct shape. These flowers have long, slender, recurring petals that look a lot like lilies. Their stems are thin and easily susceptible to wind damage. But they come in many colors and look incredibly beautiful in any floral arrangement.
Viridiflora Tulips
Often considered a novelty because of their unusual shape and colors, viridiflora tulips are truly a sight to behold when in full bloom. These flowers are green with other colors acting as complimentary colors. Their stunning combination of colors and the inherent green tones look amazing in any floral arrangement.
Kaufmanniana Tulips
Popular for their brightly contrasting colors, these flowers are perfect for bringing vibrancy and freshness to any decor or garden. During the day, the open buds look a lot like a star or a water lily with stunning colors added in stripes. But when closed they resemble a chalice with a different look and colors. These flowers are good for rocky gardens and containers.
Greigii Tulips
These perennial tulips have chalice shaped bulbs that open wide to reveal purple streaks within. These flowers have vibrant colors with purple streaks and look great in gardens or in any floral arrangements. They go really well with daffodils, anemones, and hyacinths.
Darwin Hybrid Tulips
Darwin hybrids have long, sturdy stems and large, egg-shaped, single blooms. They come in a wide range of colors including red, orange, yellow, and pink. Some Darwin hybrids also have colored speckles and stripes on their petals that give them an exotic look. These stunning and colorful flowers are quite long lasting and hence popular as cut flowers.
Parrot Tulips
Developed from some triumph tulips and certain late-flowering tulips, these parrot tulip bulbs are tall and beautiful. The buds are initially green but as the flowers mature, they reveal other colors quite similar to a parrot’s plumage. Their petals are serrated or fringed at the top which when combined with their unusual shape and brilliant colors, give the flower a whimsical look.
