Tulip: the top bulb

The tulip has always topped the list of favourite bulbs, and ranks third in the list of cut flowers, after the mixed bouquet and the rose. The tulip is also a great favourite in the garden and makes up one-third of all bulb exports. Not surprisingly, therefore, there is a huge variety of tulips on the market, currently over 3000, about one hundred of which are traded on a large scale. There are a number of different groups for the tulip varieties, based on their form and flowering period, such as single tulips, double tulips, botanical tulips, parrot tulips and lily flowered tulips. There is also a group of botanical bulbs with its own varieties. The tulip is a typical spring flower, which must be planted in autumn in order to flower in spring.

Creating a new bulb is a time-consuming business. An extensive programme of cross-breeding of different varieties will, after a minimum of ten years and sometimes as much as twenty years, result in the introduction of a new variety. During this period, possible new varieties are continuously subjected to a strict selection process. In order to survive, a bulb flower must both improve and complement the existing assortment. Tests are used to show whether a product has the right qualities. Only when a bulb flower has successfully passed all the initial rounds, can it be introduced onto the market. This means that a suitable name must be found for the product. Sometimes this will be the name of a famous person, such as Hilary Clinton or Rembrandt. Just as often, though, a flower will be given a name that refers to its colour and shape, such as the Flaming Parrot or the striking orange dahlia Autumn Fairy. A new variety officially receives its name at its baptism. The flower is showered with champagne and a toast is drunk to the new variety, thereby sealing its future success.

The tulip was brought to the Netherlands from Central Asia in the sixteenth century. From that time, it grew to become the national symbol of the small trading nation on the North Sea. Breeders, growers, traders and consumers are particularly interested in new, exclusive varieties. The black tulip in particular has captured people’s imagination. More ».