12 Spectacular Tulips ~ A Perennial a Week

Is there anything as lovely as a vase filled with tulips? If you have ever flipped through the pages of a bulb catalog, you know how easy it is to get lost in the beauty of the endless varieties and colors of tulips. One is prettier than the next!

 

Taking the time and care to plant tulip bulbs in the fall, is so worth it when you see those beautiful flowers in the spring. Selecting tulips, and other spring bulbs, with different bloom times, can keep the color ‘show’ going for many, many weeks!

 

Since fall is the usual time to plant those spring bulbs, we found 12 spectacular tulips to take center stage this week. If you are not familiar with the more ‘uncommon’ types of tulip flowers, like the double flowering, parrot, greigii, or peony flowering tulips, you may be pleasantly surprised!

 

 

12 Spectacular Tulips

 

This is the Tulip Ice Cream, which gets its name from its petal color arrangement – short outer dark pink petals form the ‘cone’ and the rounded, densely formed white petals are the ‘ice cream’. It looks rather like a tropical flower in its unique character and color palette.  Tulip Ice Cream grows around 16” – 18” in height in full sun to part shade. It is hardy in zones 3 – 8, and blooms in late spring. Love those late blooming tulips!

 

 

 

The second tulip is a parrot tulip – one the largest of all tulips, with petals that resemble the curled frilly feathers of a parrot. This one is called Blue Parrot Tulip and produces a blue-violet flower in late spring. It reaches around 20” in height, likes full to mostly sun, and is hardy in zones 4-7.

 

 

 

The Pink Star tulip is a peony flowering tulip. Although it has feathered petals similar to the parrot tulip, its entire flower looks so like the flowers of a peony. It is also known as a Double Late variety, for its late April bloom time, and the abundance of petals. Hardy in zones 3 – 7, and reaches 14” -16” in height. This tulip has a romance about it.

 

 

 

The Danceline Tulip is another peony-like tulip. It is a taller variety than the Pink Star, reaching around 20” in height. The late spring blooming Danceline has a large 5” diameter flower when fully open. This white tulip with raspberry accents is hardy in zones 3 – 8, and likes full sun/partial shade.

 

 

 

The striking red of the appropriately named ‘Red Riding Hood’, would certainly add a pop of color to the early spring garden. Its petite stature of around 12” in height, the gentle curl of the outer petals, and its striped leaves, give this Greigii tulip a sort of a woodland appearance as if it grew as a wildflower at the edge of the woods. The hardiness zones are 3 – 8, with full sun or partial shade.

 

 

 

The Champagne Diamond Tulip is a full sun, semi-double to double bloom tulip, with opulent peony-like flowers. It reaches 12” in height, blooms in May, and is hardy in zones 3-8. Wouldn’t bouquets of this tulip look amazingly gorgeous on the tables at a wedding reception?

 

 

 

The buds of the Tulip Sapporo begin to open with a creamy yellow, and then to white when fully open. The flower’s long pointed wing-like petals, have a certain elegance. This tulip works in a sunny garden, as well as a shady one. It is a taller, late spring blooming variety that reaches the height range of 18” – 24”. It is hardy in zones 3 – 8.

 

 

 

Peach Melba Tulip is simply gorgeous with the peach/apricot inner petals being accented by the pink, green, and yellow. If this were a fabric print, wouldn’t it make a beautiful throw pillow? The 12” tall Peach Melba likes full sun to partial shade, and blooms in mid spring. It is hardy in zones 3-8.

 

 

 

The double flowering (means it has more petals than the single flowering variety) of the Monsella Tulip has a pretty yellow petal streaked with red. This smaller (10”-12” height) early spring blooming tulip has a bit of a regal appearance. And in the warmth of the sun, the Monsella tulip opens widely to a water lily shape. Use in full sun in the garden in zones 3-8.

 

 

 

We wanted to find a spectacular yellow, and we think the Batalinii Bright Gem Tulip fits the bill. Its cheery yellow, rounded flowers have a tinge of light peach on its outer petals. This is the shortest tulip we are featuring in this post, reaching around 4”-8”. Likes full sun to very light shade, and it hardy in zones 4-8.

 

 

 

The Emperor tulip has large flowers borne in April. The Exotic Emperor has a semi-double frilly white flower with sparse green and yellow stripes on the outer petals. It reaches to around 16” or more in height, likes full sun to partial sun, and is hardy in zones 3-8.

 

 

 

The May blooming Florosa Tulip is just stunning, with its unique pale yellow and blush pink color combination. The color ‘design’ combined with the elegant bloom shape is just beautiful. This tulip reaches around 20”-24” in height, and is hardy in zones 3-7.

 

 

 

All of these tulips are great for cutting, and many were noted as having fragrant flowers

 

If you’re looking for a planting idea with an unforgettable look, a sweeping mass planting like this is quite stunning.

 

So often, local garden stores have limited selections in spring bulbs, where as these online stores offer so many more varieties. If you buy online, just be sure you’re buying a plant that is hardy in the area where you live. And, as always, follow the planting and care instructions that come with your tulips!

 

Seriously, it was difficult to bring this post to a close. We were only going to feature 5 ‘spectacular’ tulips but how could we stop at just five? It was like ‘oh, that one is gorgeous, too’ and ‘ok, ok, just one more’. If you get onto any of the online stores referenced above, you’ll see what we mean!

 

Happy planting!