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THE TULIPS OF HOLLAND
Every spring, the Netherlands becomes a living painting. Sheets of colour unfurl across the landscape: rows of flaming orange, shores of cool lavender, great tides of pink and white. Tulips are more than flowers here — they are heritage, industry, art, and emotion braided together. In the Dutch imagination, the tulip occupies a space somewhere between national symbol and personal companion: it marks the first true warmth of the year, the shift in light, the reassurance that winter has indeed passed.
While tourists tend to think of tulips monolithically — bright, simple, and endlessly cheerful — Dutch growers and garden designers speak of them with the same nuance that wine experts reserve for terroir. Tulips in Holland fall into expressive families, each with its own devoted following and its own ideal uses. Understanding these groups is the key to choosing varieties that shine, whether in a formal border, a wild meadow, or a vase on the breakfast table.
What follows is a long-form guide to the tulip varieties most coveted in the Netherlands: their history, their unique qualities, and the artistry behind using them well.
THE CULTURE BEHIND THE FLOWER
Tulips arrived in the Low Countries in the late 16th century, quickly captivating botanists and aristocrats who prized their vivid colours and elegant forms. They became symbols of refinement and rarity, culminating in the 17th-century craze now known as Tulip Mania. The frenzy was fuelled largely by “broken tulips,” whose petals bore painterly streaks and flames caused by a virus that altered pigmentation. These blooms appeared mystical in their unpredictability. Their rarity inspired wild bidding wars, though the legend is more exaggerated in pop culture than in actual history.
Today, tulip mania expresses itself in a gentler, horticultural way: through national passion, precision cultivation, and a nearly spiritual dedication to beauty. The Dutch remain the world’s foremost tulip breeders, exporting billions of bulbs annually. Yet for all that scale, the craft is intimate. Every beloved variety has a story. Every grower has favourites.
THE TULIP FAMILIES OF HOLLAND
A richly woven narrative of the varieties the Dutch hold dearest.
THE CLASSIC GRANDEURS: Single Late Tulips
The Single Late tulips are the grand dames of the spring garden — tall, poised, and dignified. They bloom later than most, extending the tulip season into May when earlier groups have faded. Their silhouettes are unmistakably elegant: long stems, large oval blooms, and a calm, confident presence.
Among these, ‘Queen of Night’ is legendary. Deep aubergine, nearly black in certain light, it lends drama to Dutch garden design. No variety combines moodiness and refinement quite like it. Landscape architects often plant ‘Queen of Night’ in great drifts or pair it with white or blush companions to heighten contrast. Its popularity endures because it brings a level of visual sophistication rare in spring flowers.
THE RELIABLE GIANTS: Darwin Hybrid Tulips
The Darwin Hybrids are the sturdy, generous souls of the tulip world — beloved by both commercial growers and home gardeners. Known for their impressive size and robust stems, they stand up to spring winds and unpredictable weather, making them ideal for cutting gardens and public displays.
A standout is ‘Pink Impression’, whose rose-toned blooms are almost luminous against early foliage. It captures the Dutch taste for bold, warm colour and dependable performance. Darwin Hybrids often return for multiple seasons if planted in well-drained soil, a trait increasingly appreciated as gardeners seek perennial value rather than purely annual spectacle.
THE EVERYDAY BEAUTIES: Triumph Tulips
If you picture an archetypal tulip — the sort a child might draw — you are picturing a Triumph. This group is the backbone of Dutch tulip culture, producing the neat, classic cup-shaped blooms that dominate fields and city plantings. Their range of colours is astonishing: from bright primaries to smoky pastels and painterly bicolours.
In Holland, Triumphs are often used in municipal displays and large-scale field plantings because they bloom reliably, stand up straight, and combine easily. They are the tulips of everyday joy — accessible, abundant, and adaptable — yet within the group are dozens of varieties prized in sophisticated designs.
THE FLAMBOYANT ARTISTS: Parrot Tulips
Parrot tulips are the maximalists of the tulip world. Their petals twist and curl, edged like feathers caught in the wind. Their colours, too, seem wild: emerald-streaked reds, wine-dark purples, hot pinks that look dipped in light. They bloom late and make extraordinary cut flowers.
The Dutch adore ‘Black Parrot’, whose ruffled, deep-plum petals unfurl with theatrical flair. Parrot tulips are ideal for gardeners who see flowers as characters — expressive, unpredictable, and thrillingly alive. A single stem in a vase can suggest an entire still-life painting.
THE SCULPTORS: Lily-Flowered Tulips
Slender, tall, and flaring elegantly at the tips, lily-flowered tulips possess a rare delicacy. They look almost hand-drawn — the sort of flowers that seem to float rather than stand. Their shape introduces vertical tension into a border, pairing beautifully with frothy perennials like forget-me-nots or fringed euphorbias.
Two varieties beloved in Dutch contemporary design are ‘Mariette’, a soft pink classic, and ‘White Triumphator’, a pristine white beauty often used in modernist gardens. Their elegance lies not in flamboyance but in restraint.
THE TEXTURAL MODERNISTS: Fringed Tulips
Fringed tulips appeal to Dutch gardeners with a taste for tactile detail. Their petal edges are finely serrated, catching morning light in crystalline patterns. In mass plantings they shimmer; in close-up gardens they invite curiosity.
These tulips often combine traditional flower shapes with unexpected texture, making them favourites in avant-garde planting schemes. They appear delicate but are surprisingly resilient, blooming in mid- to late-spring.
THE NATURALISTS: Species, Greigii, and Kaufmanniana Tulips
Not all tulips are tall or flamboyant. Some are subtle, wild, and deeply charming. Species tulips — including the Greigii and Kaufmanniana groups — are smaller, earlier, and often beautifully patterned. Their leaves may be mottled or striped; their flowers open wide on sunny days, creating star-shaped displays.
These are the tulips that Dutch gardeners plant in rock gardens, meadows, or beneath fruit trees. They naturalise gracefully and return year after year with minimal fuss. For gardeners seeking authenticity and seasonality rather than spectacle, these little gems are indispensable.
THE MYTHICAL MARVELS: Rembrandt (Broken) Tulips
No variety carries more mystique than the Rembrandt tulips. Historically, their flame-like streaks were caused by a virus that disrupted pigment production. The effect was breathtaking, but the plants were fragile. Many of the original 17th-century varieties — such as the fabled Semper Augustus — are lost to time.
Modern breeders now create healthy, virus-free tulips that replicate the old patterns without risk. These “Rembrandt-style” tulips combine history with horticultural reliability, making them favourites among collectors and heritage garden enthusiasts. Their striped petals evoke the Dutch Golden Age with uncanny immediacy.
HOW THE DUTCH PLANT THEIR TULIPS
In the Netherlands, tulip planting is both craft and choreography. Gardeners approach design with a few guiding principles:
Mass and Rhythm
Rather than scattering many varieties, Dutch designers often choose one or two cultivars and plant them in generous sweeps. This creates visual rhythm and coherence, allowing each variety’s character to shine.
Contrast and Harmony
Colour pairings are deliberate:
- near-black with white for drama
- pastel pinks with apricots for romance
- whites with green-touched flowers for modern minimalism
Timing the Bloom
By mixing early species tulips, mid-season Triumphs, and late-flowering Single Lates or Parrots, gardeners can stretch the season from early April into mid-May.
Planting Practice
Bulbs are planted in autumn, after soil cools, at two to three times their height. Dutch growers emphasise good drainage, sunlight, and generous spacing — though for intense colour blocks, bulbs may be planted closer than typical home-garden recommendations.