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Saturday, October 26, 2013

This year I timed it just right.


Last year I was too late.
You have to get there just after Spring bulbs have been delivered. 

 The coveted Rembrandt Tulip.




Is the first Tulip to disappear from Costco shelves. 


Yes, you can find them in garden catalogs.
But oh, they are expensive.

Tulips were introduced to Europe from Turkey.
Have you heard of "Tulipomania" ?

I have to replant my tulips every year.  Little critters feast on them.
Of course I could enclose each Tulip bulb in a wire cage and plant it or hang it from the ceiling, as was the custom in Holland. 






I planted 400 Tulip bulbs in between a row of Lavender yesterday. 


Have a wonderful weekend my dear Blogging Friends. 

Gina


Note:
All of the above photographs were taken in my 2012 Spring Garden. 


  

20 comments:

  1. Gina,

    A breathtakingly beautiful presentation of the Rembrandt tulip, in all its brilliant glory! Thank you for these amazingly acute photographs!

    Poppy

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    1. Hello Poppy, My tulip pictures where taken in the Spring of 2012. I'm keeping fingers crossed that many will make it for April 2014. Thank you for stopping by.

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  2. 400 :-O! EG, my better half, plants daffodils, about 300 this year and the left overs are going in pots. I hope all your beautiful ruffled ones will come up as on the pictures, I hope you will share it.
    Came across your nice blog recently and love it. Greetings from Belgium.

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    1. Hello Bayou, Thank you so much for your visit. I will definitely share pictures. And I would love to see your daffodils. At least the little critters don't eat Daffodil bulbs (because they are poisonous) and they are allowed to naturalize.

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  3. Dear Gina - I have indeed read about Tulipomania, such a strange phenomenon! It is as though the story came out of a fairy tale. I can see why the Rembrandt tulips leave the shelves first — it's clear that there are many people as discerning as you when it comes to tulips!

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    1. Dear Mark, You give me too much credit. Discerning? More like a glutton when it comes to flowers. Tulipomania, so strange when a single tulip bulbs can cost as much as a house and tulip bulbs are used instead of Guilders.

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  4. Dear Gina - putting in 400 tulips must have been back breaking work - but the results next spring will be glorious. The Rembrandt and the Parrot tulips are definitely the most attractive. If I see any then I will grab the quickly.

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    1. Dear Rosemary, The soil was just right and my shovel did quick work. I usually mass 5 to7 bulbs all together. After they bloom next Spring I will lay them out and let them age in the sun. That has worked for me in the past, that is, if the voles don't find them first.

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  5. You are so industrious ;), wow you are one busy lady and everything you do, turns out so beautifully...you plan very well! The Tulips, the Lavender, sounds heavenly. I planted over 500 bulbs...assorted, including Tulips a few years ago. My neighborhood creatures took at least 3/4 of them and either ate them, or buried them in someone else s yard...

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    1. Dear Mary, I'm sorry that you lost most of your tulips. If you planted them with fish fertilizer or bone meal (as is recommended) your neighborhood cats probably dug them up. They won't eat the bulbs but many other critters will. Next time plant them without fertilizer because they have enough fertilizer within them to make a good show the first year.

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  6. I've done tulips for many years - except the past two when I was gone during planting, blooming time. Oh boy, missed them so much! Fortunately the daffodils continue to proliferate but Winters are just too warm here to allow perennialization of tulips, so this means new bulbs annually. I too battle with the squirrels digging and eating them (and good bulbs aren't cheap!) so have resorted to planting mostly in pots and covering them with mesh until they pop up. Your pics are brilliant Gina - am I too late for Costco now? I forgot to check when there earlier this week?

    Thanks for the lovely birthday wishes - with such positive comments I'm already loving the seventies, haha!!!! We're such a great group aren't we?

    Hugs - Mary

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    1. Dear Mary, I complain a lot about our cold winters but realize that I get to enjoy our Spring bulbs. And what a show they make.
      You have to look very carefully for the Rembrandts. The bags are marked "Tulipa, Soft Spring Mix Melange". The bag contains 50 bulbs instead of 90 bulbs.
      And yes, we are a great group.

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  7. Dear Gina, if the word discerning means having good judgement/taste, I say that it is correctly applied to you by Mark.The beauty of your
    flowers is always enchanting and it gives me great pleasure to visit your blog and to get inspired by your posts. These tulips are just one
    example of the many wonderful varieties of flowers you have shared with us.They are truly special and so are you.
    Warm greetings, Sieglinde

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    1. Dear Sieglinde, I am so grateful for your sweet comments and I am delighted that you like to visit my blog. I enjoy receiving your beautiful photograph and one of these days you might even want to share them with all of us. I think that a Sieglinde blog is definitely what we would all enjoy. Your food recipes and the stylish way you serve your meals would make for a beautiful blog.
      So, what do you think?

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  8. Simply magnificent Gina.
    Yes.. tulips come from Turkey. I have always known this tulip as the parrot tulip.
    Your show must be amazing.. more photos please when they are blooming.
    such a lovely post .. Flowers make me so happy.
    xxxx val

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    1. Dear Val, Can you imagine the mountain tops of Turkey with cows and goats feasting on Tulips? Of course, in their natural state, they are only yellow and red. That is why most hybrid tulip varieties eventually revert back to their original colors.
      We'll have to wait till middle of April to see the big show.

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  9. Tulips are my favourite flowers and yours are really gorgeous! I think I have never seen such multicolored tulips again, oh, they are impressiveI Wish you can have a better crop next year, I can imagine how hard you work and with how much love you invest this activity...I was happy to find your comment on my blog, I thank you and I apologize for my English, I'm better in French but I think you understand me.
    Warm Greetings
    Olympia

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    1. Dear Olympia, I am so pleased that you stopped by and wrote a comment. Your English is perfect. I understand you perfectly well. I'm not surprised that Tulips are your favorite flowers. They are so very special. Just knowing that they are in the ground makes me happy because I know that Spring will come again.

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  10. Absolutely stunning. Such beautiful pictures. Thanks tons for linking to Inspire Me. Hugs, Marty

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    1. Dear Marty. Thank you for hosting. Thank you also for leaving such a wonderful comment.

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