Tulips: A Field Guide

There is no such thing as too many tulips. The graceful, swan-necked flowers are a symbol of spring, proof of rebirth, and evidence that the worst may be over for another year.

You can see how the Dutch fell under the spell of Tulip Mania in the 1600s, the century when a speculative frenzy boosted the price of flower bulbs to heights that forced investors to mortgage their homes. These days any modern gardener can afford to grow tulips, and thanks to generations of breeding, there are countless varieties: fringed tulips; rock garden tulips; blowsy double tulips (peony look-alikes); early-blooming Fosteriana tulips (descendants of the wild T. fosteriana); Darwin hybrids (mid-spring stalwarts), and feathery parrot tulips.