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