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One of the best ways to keep
your spring garden blooming is by planting bulbs that bloom at different
times. The possibilities are endless. In fact you can plant
only tulips if you like and still have staged blooms. Look for these in your favorite catalogs
and at local retailers:
Early Bloomers
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Single Early Tulips are among the earliest tulips to
bloom. The flowers, available in a wide range of colors, are
produced on strong, 10 to 18-inch-long stems. The flowers of
several varieties have a sweet fragrance. Single early tulips
are excellent for rock gardens, beds, and forcing.
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Double Early Tulips produce semi-double to double,
peony-like flowers. The flowers, measuring up to 4 inches in
diameter, are borne on strong, short stems. The color range of
double early tulips is smaller than for most other tulip
classes.
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Greigii Tulips are noted for their brightly-colored flowers
and purple striped or mottled foliage. Plant height varies
from 8 to 12 inches. Because of their short stature, Greigii
tulips are excellent choices for borders or rock gardens.
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Kaufmanniana Tulips are long-lived perennial tulips. In
sunlight, the flowers open fully. The open flowers resemble a
star or water lily. Flower colors include white, yellow, pink,
and intermediary colors. The foliage is bluish green or
chocolate brown striped. Kaufmanniana tulips are small plants
with an average height of 4 to 8 inches. Their compact size
makes them good choices for border edges and rock gardens.
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Fosteriana Tulips produce some of the largest flowers of
the genus. They also perennialize well. 'Red Emperor'
is a widely grown variety in this class. Fosteriana tulips are
sometimes referred to as emperor tulips.
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Species Tulips include wild species, horticultural
varieties, and hybrids. Most are early blooming, short-statured
plants. Species tulips are available in a wide array of
colors. They perennialize well and are excellent plants for
rock and heirloom gardens.
Middle Bloomers
These tulips will bloom after the early bloomers but just before
the late bloomers. Careful planning will pay off next spring
with a continuously blooming tulip garden.
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Darwin Hybrid Tulips are highly prized for their large,
brilliant flowers. Flowers are available in shades of red,
pink, orange, and yellow. Blooms are borne on strong stems
which are up to 30 inches tall. Darwin hybrid tulips often
bloom well for several years, making them one of the better
perennial tulips.
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Triumph Tulips produce cup-shaped flowers on strong,
medium-length stems. Average plant height is 10 to 16 inches.
This is the largest class of tulips and offers the widest range
of flower colors. Triumph tulips are excellent for forcing.
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Parrot Tulips have deeply feathered, curled, or twisted
petals. Flowers may be single or multi-colored. Many
varieties have a green spot at the base of their petals.
Parrot tulips are sensitive to poor weather and should be
planted in a protected spot.
Late Bloomers
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Single Late Tulips incorporate the former Darwin, cottage,
and breeder tulips. Along with the Darwin hybrid tulips, they
are some of the tallest tulips. Flowers are borne on stems up
to 30 inches tall and available in a wide range of colors.
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Double Late Tulips are often referred to as peony-flowered
tulips. The many-petaled flowers are borne on 12 to 20 inch
stems. Plant double late tulips in protected locations as the
large flowers can be damaged by rain and strong winds.
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Viridiflora Tulips produce long-lasting flowers which have
prominent green markings on their petals. The unusual flower
characteristics make it a novelty item in the garden.
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Lily-flowering Tulips have long pointed petals which arch
outward, the flowers somewhat resembling a lily. Flower colors
include white, pink, red, yellow, and purple. Several varieties
have petals edged or feathered in contrasting colors. Plants
grow to a height of 20 to 30 inches.
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Fringed Tulips have flowers with elegant fringed petals.
Many varieties are mutants of single late tulips. Also known
as "crispa tulips."
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Rembrandt Tulips produce striped or "broken" blooms. The
white, yellow, or red petals are striped with red, bronze, or
purple. These types were bought for huge sums during the
"tulip mania" in Holland in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries. The unusual markings were actually caused by a
virus. Due to the virus, the original Rembrandt tulips are no
longer sold. However, there are several modern, virus-free
Rembrandt tulips available.
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Multi-flowering Tulips produce 3 to 7 blooms per stem. The
main stem of multi-flowering tulips branches into secondary
stems. Each secondary stem produces a flower. The flower on
the main stem is slightly larger than those on the secondary
stems. Many of the multi-flowering cultivars belong to the
single late tulip class. These tulips are 14- to 20-inch-tall
plants which bloom late in the season. Several varieties are
multi-flowering Greigii tulips which are 8 to 12 inches tall
and early blooming.
Species Tulips
It's a sad and sometimes frustrating fact that hybridized tulips
"burn-out" every few years or so. You might be surprised to know
that species tulips are not prone to burn-out and will
return to the garden every spring for many years. Now don't be
mistaken, species tulips are different than hybrids. They
perform best in rock garden-like locations, require full sun, and
well-drained, almost gravelly soils that drain quickly between
rains.
Species
tulips are smaller in size than their hybrid relatives. Most
grow just 4 to 12 inches in height and do not like the
competition of other plants around them. Species tulips spread
by self sown seeds or stolons. Many have foliage which is
mottled or gray to blue green in color. They also offer more in
the way of bloom. Many have multiple blooms per stem, some have
up to seven!
Interested? Some species to try include:
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Tulipa batalinii has soft yellow, fragrant flowers
appearing in early spring. It grows just 5 inches tall.
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Tulipa clusiana grows 10 to 12 inches tall and blooms in
early spring. The flowers have a white interior with a crimson
central star and a pink exterior. It naturalizes very well.
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Tulipa greigii comes in pink, yellow, orange, red, buff,
cream, and apricot. It grows 8 to 12 inches tall and blooms in
mid-spring. The blossoms are large - 4 to 5 inches when fully
open.
-
Tulipa kaufmanniana grows 6 to 8 inches tall and is
available in a wide variety of colors. It blooms in early
spring.
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Tulipa linifolia grows 4 to 6 inches tall with brilliant
red flowers.
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Tulipa pulchella is a tiny plant growing 3 to 5 inches
tall. It has violet purple fragrant flowers in early spring.
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Tulipa saxatillis naturalizes readily. The flowers,
lavender-pink with a yellow base, appear mid-spring. Plants
grow 6 to 8 inches tall.
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Tulipa sylvestris grows 10 to 12 inches tall with fragrant
yellow flowers. Flowers occur 3 to 7 per stem.
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Tulipa tarda flowers are yellow with white tips. Plants
grow 4 to 6 inches tall. This tulip is easy to grow!
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Tulipa turkestanica has cream colored flowers occurring 3
to 5 per stem. Flowers appear in early spring. Plants grow 5
to 8 inches tall.
All the
species tulips listed above are hardy in zones 4 through 7 with
the exception of Tulipa pulchella and Tulipa turkestanica which
are hardy in zones 5 to 8. All should do fine in the greater
Kansas City area.
When
preparing the site, amend the area several inches wider and
deeper than the bulbs will occupy with sand or gravel. Planting
on a gentle slope or in a raised bed assures good drainage.
Plant the bulbs 5 to 8 inches deep. Species tulips are also
suitable for planting in containers.
Source
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