Plant some big blooming bulbs

There are several reasons why large flowered tulips are so popular for spring gardens - their flamboyant colour mixes, their hardiness and the way that mixing different hybrids can bring ever changing floral designs from April to June.

If you want your patch of large-flowered tulips to produce diverse blooms over a very long period, you need to plant early, mid-season and late varieties together. But if you prefer to have one glorious simultaneous flower show in one place, then you plant only early varieties, or only mid-season or only late types.

Triumph or Fosteriana types are included among early large-flowered tulips.

Mid-season tulips can include the Darwin or Gregii hybrids, fringed tulips or the multi-flowering tulips which have four or five blooms on each stem. Late-flowering tulips include Lily-flowered tulips, Parrot types and the Viridifloras.

People who like uniformity of shape as well as flowering season can achieve this by staying within a particular series: for instance, 'Orange Emperor,' 'White Emperor' and 'Red Emperor.'

The colour combinations of tulips get more theatrical every year. Many have 'flames' of contrasting colours ascending the petals such as the delectable white purple-famed 'Zurel.' Others are 'blushed' with one colour merging into another such as the deep red white-blushed 'Armani.'

In the Viridiflora tulips, the petals are brushed with green. The basically white 'Spring Green' has now been joined by 'Yellow Spring Green' and the fuchsia-pink 'Virichic.'

One of the most spectacular viridiflora tulips is the late-season 'Chinatown.' Its pink flowers are brushed with green and the deep green leaves are edged in white.

Many other variegatedleaf tulips are now available. 'Garant' is a Triumph type with large yellow flowers and cream-edged leaves. 'New Design' is a well-established variegated-leaf favourite now available almost everywhere.

A new viridiflora is 'Purisima Design,' a shortstemmed single early-flowering selection with white flowers and leaves which an edge of yellow which itself is edged with pink.

Even a few double tulips dominate their planting spot out of all proportion to their numbers. But their luxurious flower heads are often heart-breakers in our wet B.C. springs. Rain weighs the petals down until the flower-heads hit the mud and slugs make a meal of them.

Occasionally a tulip is developed which is unusual enough to become a memorable conversation piece. The Greigii hybrid 'Fire of Love' has bright red flowers and leaves which mix cream, red and green stripes. Another that's sure to get second looks is the fringed red-flowered 'Barbados.' This has green flower buds covered with green spikes which turn brilliant red as they open outward.

Tulips can often be happier, more easily looked after and sometimes recycled to bloom next year if you plant them in containers. T

Anne Marrison is happy to answer garden questions. Send them to her via [email protected]