Back to Anglian Gardener home page

Google
This site   Web

Buy plants | Design | Deck | Patio | Lawns | Questions | Sheds | Supplies | Seeds | Services | Supplies Local | I like | Buildings | Lore | Mowers | Plants | Floral Art | BooksPests | Power Tools | Site map | Clothing | Sheepskin slippers | Sheepskin boots | Ugg Boots | Green lifestyle | Personal care

Polyanthus Crescendo® Mixed F1 Hybrid
Polyanthus Crescendo® Mixed F1 Hybrid

36 plug plants + 6 FREE £11.99

Fuchsia Lady Boothby
Fuchsia Lady Boothby
- world's only climbing Fuchsia - 3 plants £6.49


Black Bamboo
Phyllostachys nigra

restrained in habit
5
L pot was £34.99 - now £17.95

Fuchsia Hardy Collection A (Army Nurse, Delta's Sarah & Shrimp Cocktail)
Fuchsia Hardy Collection 9 plants 3 of each for £8.99

Perennial Bumper Pack A
Perennial Bumper Pack
36 plants - £19.99

Clematis Old Favourites Colllection E
Clematis Old Favourites Collection
3 young plants £8.98

Clematis The President
Clematis The President classic climber, long flowering period
1 plant £6.49

Clematis montana Mayleen
Clematis montana Mayleen scented
1 plant 7cm pot £6.49
3 plants £12.98

Pansy Waterfall F1
Pansy Waterfall F1

25 plug plants £9.99

Cyclamen Coum Album  - Woodland Cyclamen (White)
Cyclamen Coum Album - Woodland Cyclamen (White)

3 tubers £5.49

 

Tulips

Bulbs for sale on this page are available from Late August to December Daffodils / Narcissi  Hyacinths


Bulbs at T&M

Other plant pages: Plants home | Lilies |  Architectural plants | Burglar - proof | Conifers | Clematis | Climbers | Dry shade | Fast-growing plants | Foolproof plants | Grasses | Hardy geraniums | Hedges and hedging plants | Herbs | Spring bulbs and winter shrubs | Trees | Trees Jan-June interest | Trees July-Dec interest | Waterlogged soilPlants Q & A. | Spring collection

Buy plants online A-Z list

Landscapers palette: perennials | shrubs | trees | climbers | ground cover

Tulips come in many shapes and varieties, the most popular types are a few are shown here:

Tulipa tarda
Tulipa tarda
Species tulips
, usually short, unusually shaped but still recognisably tulips, good for borders and rock gardens.
Tulip Ballerina
Tulip Ballerina
Lily-flowered tulips, the petals are pointed and swept outwards. Tall, good for borders and impressive single variety containers.
Tulip Triumph Mixed
Tulip Triumph Mixed
The commonest shape available in a huge range of colours and patterns. Short to tall varieties, good for bedding or containers.
Tulip Black Parrot
Tulip Black Parrot
Parrot flowered tulips, feathered edges to the petals, often available in a range of unusual colours and patterns, tall.

Three more of the best Tulips

Tulip White DreamWhite Dream
Pristine white blooms, inexpensively priced too
Tulip AngéliqueAngélique
Peony-flowered with double blooms
Tulip BalladeBallade
Lily flowered elegance and a show-stopping colour too

Three of the best Daffodils - more Daffodils and Narcissi

Narcissus February GoldFebruary Gold' elegant yellow
Good for naturalising in grass

Narcissus Miniature HaweraTete a Tete
Delicate multi-headed
Good for containers
Narcissus Grand Soleil d'OrGrand Soleil d'Or
Vibrant multi-headed
Good for indoors

Three of the best Hyacinths for Christmas flowering - must be potted and brought indoors - more Hyacinths

Hyacinth Indoor - CarnegieCarnegie
Brilliant white
Hyacinth Indoor - Delft BlueDelft Blue
The best of the blues
Hyacinth Indoor - Pink PearlPink Pearl
Deep rich pink

Tulips are amongst my favourite flowers of any type, they manage to balance symmetrical perfection with a faultless elegance of proportion with that indefinable delicacy and vulnerability that the finest flowers have.

Best planted in groups of one variety, this applies to all bulbs, but more so for tulips than any of the others, why anyone should buy a bag of "mixed varieties and colours" is beyond me.

Take care if you have yellow tulips and daffodils, they can get rather mixed up when flowering together.

Of the other colours, traditional large reds are very robust and will grow in most places, but the finest to my eye at least are the white and pink lily-flowered varieties. These have rather taller thinner flowers than most tulips with a slightly out-turned tip to each petal.

Grown in containers for the house tulips are an extravagance as you need a large container and the flowers are rather short lived if you bring them into the warmth. I'd never be without a couple of large bowls of my favourites though, bring them indoors in the day and place them outside somewhere sheltered in the evening. If you have a cool (non-heated) conservatory, all the better.

 The shops and markets in spring will be full of freshly cut tulips of the common shapes and shades, so go for something a little out of the ordinary. Smaller species tulips are becoming more commonly available, they don't seem to do so well indoors but are ideal for a large outdoor container, just outside the front door is one of the best places to appreciate them as often as possible.

Tulip Care

Plant - In containers, borders or beds, NOT in grass

Depth - 5-8" of soil above the top of the bulb, less in clay, more in sandy soils, can be planted on a bed of grit or gravel if rotting is a problem. Squirrels may dig the bulbs up, if this is a problem, bury chicken wire (large gaps) about 2" below the oil surface above the bulbs.

Depth in containers - 2-3" of compost above the bulbs, in very large pots, a double layer can be planted with the lower ones growing up through the ones above, this gives a greater density of blooms at flowering time.

Cultivation - after flowering, remove seed heads so not to waste resources, water once with double strength liquid fertiliser, plenty of it to reach the bulbs and roots. Leave leaves to die down naturally, they can removed when completely brown and can be pulled up easily. Tulip leaves are less obtrusive than other bulbs foliage.

Container cultivation - if the containers are to be brought indoors, grow them on somewhere cool but sheltered a cold greenhouse, conservatory or similar is ideal. Let them grow as tall as possible before bringing them indoors as they may get leggy and even not flower if brought in too early. They will last longest in a cool but bright position.

After the flowers are over, put them outside in a sheltered position and grow / water / feed as normal for bulbs. They will not perform as well the next year at all, so don't even bother trying, bulbs for indoor containers should be bought fresh each year. When the leaves have died down, they can be left to dry out and planted in the garden in the autumn as outdoor bulbs. They won't be very good in year 2, but will be fine from 3 onwards.

recommended varieties

Tulip Allegretto
Tulip Angélique
Tulip Antoinette
Tulip Apricot Beauty
Tulip Atlantis
Tulip Ballade
Tulip Ballerina

Tulip Black Parrot
Tulip Blueberry Ripple
Tulip Canasta
Tulip clusiana Lady Jane
Tulip clusiana Tinka
Tulip Davenport

Tulip Double Red Riding Hood
Tulip Easter Parade
Tulip Fringed Family
Tulip Ice Cream
Tulip Jackpot
Tulip Mickey Mouse
Tulip New Design
Tulip Omniac
Tulip Peach Blossom
Tulip Peacock Mixed
Tulip Pinocchio
Tulip praestans Fusilier
Tulip praestans Unicum
Tulip Princess Irene
Tulip Queen of the Night
Tulip Red Emperor
Tulip Spring Green
Tulip Tangerine Beauty
Tulip Triumph Mixed
Tulip Union Jack
Tulip White Dream
Tulip White Fire
Tulipa humilis
Tulipa tarda

Planting in containers

The key point to remember is that these are temporary plantings, so you can plant the bulbs very close together, almost touching, for the maximum density of flowers. Buy the largest bulbs you can afford, smaller ones just don't perform as well and the smallest may produce lots of leaves but no flowers at all. After flowering plant them in the garden as soon as you can, they won't perform as well next year, you need to start with large bought ones again.

Bulb fibre is often recommended, but is only really necessary if the bulbs are to be planted in bowls without drainage. I've always treated bulbs like any other container plants and use ordinary potting compost in containers that have drainage holes and get excellent results.

   If you start before about the middle of September (but the sooner the better), you can have Spring Flowering Bulbs for the house in flower at or just after Christmas. If you can get them planted before November, then they will have a chance to start growing before it begins to get very cold which will help them to flower all the earlier, they'll certainly be up early in the new year and long before the outdoor ones have woken up.

Daffodils / Narcissi | Hyacinths

 

Garden Supplies Online | Design | Decks | Patios | Buy plants online | Tips | Lawns | Questions? | Structures | Garden buildings | Garden Contractors | Garden Supplies Local | I like | Privacy policy | Site map | Feedback | Links | Plant Nursery | Health

About us

Last  updated 23 June 2008     Copyright © Paul Ward 2000 - 2008