2018: Year of the Tulip

The National Garden Bureau has declared 2018 to be "The Year of the Tulip," pointing out that "their vivid, paint-box colors are a feast for winter-weary eyes." My Tulips that are planted in the traffic island (below) in front of our house nicely prove the truth of that statement. This location is one of the few places where I have had Tulip bulbs bloom for multiple years.

The National Garden Bureau also pointed out that Tulips have been cultivated in earnest for at least 400 years. and that there are over 150 species of tulips with over 3,000 different varieties and are classified into 16 Divisions by types. I love that kind of horticultural trivia. But you don't need to know it in order to grow Tulips. What you need to succeed in growing these beauties is advice from an expert. I love cutting Tulips from the garden for my spring bouquets (below), so I was happy to have a chance to hear from a Tulip expert in person.

I was lucky enough to attend a presentation at the Allen Centennial Gardens Spring Symposium by Tulip expert Jacqueline van der Kloet. Her name may be familiar to you as one of the designers involved with the Lurie Garden in Chicago; Kloet created their matrix of flowering spring bulbs.  Her own garden in the Netherlands is highly inspirational as well, but on a domestic scale that all of us can learn from. This image gives you a sense of how she includes Tulips within perennial beds where their new spring foliage hides the dying Tulip foliage.

Jacqueline van der Kloet offered these planting tips if you want your Tulips to return again — and again:

1. Plant the bulbs  at least 5 inches (12.7 cm.) deep

2. Plant in full sun

3. Deadhead when the flowers no longer close at night

4. Leave the leaves AND stem which are necessary to produce new bulbs

My advice is to keep your phone handy so you can snap photos this spring of Tulips that catch your eye. Be sure to note the name so you will be able to find them when it comes time to order bulbs for fall planting. 

"Color Your Garden: Exciting Mixtures of Bulbs and Perennials" is the title of van der Kloet's book which is coming out at the end of March. Be democratic and buy local: Order van der Kloet's book from your favorite independent bookseller instead of buying it from the gigantic corporation who shall remain nameless. My personal favorite is Mystery to Me bookstore on Monroe St. I've had them order me all kinds of different books and I've bought poetry, politics and kids' books from their in-store stock. It goes without saying that they are superb if you are looking for a mystery. Not only do they carry an outstanding array of titles and authors but they always turn me on to someone or something new whenever I visit. 

Comments

[Kristin]

A mystery bookstore?! Yet another reason to wish we still lived in Madison...at least PART of the year!

[Frank]

Plant of the year? How exciting! After a couple years of saying it's silly of me to keep adding more I decided I don't care! I pick them up whenever I can, plant them wherever they fit, and love the show each spring. Lots of tulips is the one good thing about gardening on soil which closely resembles the thin, droughty, dirt of their native haunts.

[Peter/Outlaw]

Tulips are one of the joys of spring! Your arrangement is glorious and beautifully illustrates the blending of tulips and perennial foliage. Good to know that 2018 is the year of the tulip. I'll have to throw some more in the ground in the fall!

[Lisa at Greenbow]

I planted a few tulips last fall. I can't wait to see if they come up. I even thought to put fencing over it so the squirrels couldn't dig them up. I have one clump of white tulips that come back year after year. They never reproduce but that is ok. I am always happy to see them. Seeing these tulips makes me long for spring even more.