My 2016 Tulip Order!
Yes, once again it is time to order the tulips. This year’s order is a mix of old favorites and promising newcomers.
First, for the old favorites:
‘Annie Schilder’ – A mid-season orange tulip, about 18″ tall. Annie is a Triumph tulip, a cross between Single Early and Darwin Hybrid.
‘Ballerina’ – An orange Lily Flowering tulip and one of my favorite favorites, if you get my meaning. I’m very fond of orange tulips, as I am fond of orange flowers in general. Late blooming and 22″ tall.
‘Couleur Cardinal’ – Another one of my favorite favorites! A Single Early tulip, red-purple, short but sturdy at 12″ tall.
‘Keizerskroon’ – A brilliant red and yellow Single Early tulip variety that goes back to 1750.
‘Princess Irene’ – Another Single Early, a dramatic mix of orange and purple.
But we don’t want to get stuck in a rut, do we? So here are the newbies I’m trying out this fall:
‘Cash’ – Bright orange with red flames, a mid-season Darwin Hybrid about 20″ tall.
‘Dordogne’ – A single late tulip, a towering 26″, with big red and orange flowers.
‘Pittsburgh’ – A mid-season Triumph tulip. Looks rather like ‘Couleur Cardinal’ but more purple and taller at 18″.
‘Red Riding Hood’ – A scarlet red Greigii tulip with mottled foliage, mid-season but short at only 10″ tall.
‘Stunning Apricot’ – I’m very fond of apricots. This one is a Single Late tulip, an imposing 28″ tall.
‘Suncatcher’ – A red and yellow Triumph tulip that blooms mid-season.
I only ordered 180 tulips, so I probably should have ordered fewer varieties. It’s just so hard to choose.
In addition to tulips, I ordered a few more hardy lilies – 5 ‘Casa Blanca’ Oriental Lilies and 5 ‘Conca D’Or’ Orienpets.
Finally, thanks to the Minneapolis Garden Bloggers Fling, Judy and I will receive 200 mixed Daffodils for free from Colorblends. So I will have my hands full, literally, in October.
Have you ordered your fall bulbs yet?
gardeninacity 
The ones you’ve chosen are all beautiful. How do you prevent the squirrels from digging them up?
Chicken wire.
I ordered mine in August and they were delivered last Friday Jason. I intend chilling all the tulips before planting them and some I’m going to experiment with various chilling times and different heat if planted in pots for cutting. The two huge boxes are a bit daunting if I’m honest.
One advantage of our climate i s that there is no need to worry about chilling the tulip bulbs.
Ah yes, that’s true!
Tulips are impressive in their diversity. They seem to come in every color. However, I have never seen an all-green tulip–one with the flower and the stem all the same color.
There is a grouping of Tulips called the Viridis – they have a greenish stripe down the center of the tepals. I’m not especially fond of them, myself. However, you are absolutely right that tulips have amazing genetic diversity, which explains why they are so beloved by breeders!
Wow. That is a lot of digging. You must have a strong back and hardy knees.
Actually, the tulips and at least most of the Narcissi are going into pots.
Gosh no, I haven’t ordered any bulbs yet. I really should get busy. All of your choices sound fabulous for your spring display. FUN.
You have quite a few of my favourites here Jason and also some new to me. I shall look out for Stunning Apricot. Oh dear, it is so difficult, there are are always so many gorgeous ones in the catalogues that I have to revise my list several times and still manage to spend far too much.
Sometimes a new variety is disappointing but still I like trying out different ones. I’d like to have a whole garden with nothing but tulips and summer annuals so I could try everything that catches my fancy.
Only 180 tulips?? I think our definition of what constitutes a large order is very different! 🙂 I’ve not ordered any bulbs this year as I have so much on my plate already (due to all the delays this summer with the hot weather) that I’ve decided to hold off until next year instead. I hope you do a post when you plant those all up…
You can count on it!
I remember you telling us how you bury your potted tulips in the vegetable patch to over-winter. I didn’t order tulips last year and shall have you to blame if I succumb to temptation this year!
This year I think I’m just going to assemble them in the back garden and cover them with leaves.
Thanks for your inspiration. I’m going to try again this year in pots.
Enjoy!
Your containers are going to be astounding. Great choices!
Thanks!
I’m waiting for my Colorblends order of tulips and have a bag of Princess Irene in the garage. I’m determined not to let them rot this year….. Love your selections!
‘Princess Irene’ tulips are a terrible thing to waste.
you have beautiful flowers and photos. The purple flowers look like plums, and the orange ones look like peaches.
Wow, those are going to be great!
I can’t understand when people say what an awful amount of work tulips are. Yeah, maybe a little but they’re so rewarding. Your garden will have another amazing spring 🙂
You can put more or less work into tulips. If you change them every year, as I do, it is more work. But as you say, they are so rewarding.
I always look forward to your Tulip posts because I can’t grow them here. Thanks for the eye candy and the preview of bright colors and springtime to come!
You’re welcome!
Your tulip display is something I look forward to.
I like the look of ‘Pittsburgh’. My mother-in-law gave me some money to spend on tulips for my birthday and I’ve a list that’s getting longer..! Look forward to seeing all these next year 🙂
Me too. Don’t forget to post about your tulips next spring.
The tulips look gorgeous .. Especially the apricot ones & the Pittsburgh” which I may not be able to get in Australia. The cockatoos have beheaded some of my lovely red tulips … At least you don’t have that problem!
Here it’s the squirrels who commit the occasional tulip decapitation.
I love those oranges and reds too, but I have chosen a few paler ones this year – whites, pinks and violets… they should be arriving tomorrow, so I could get some in this weekend! I also chose some Camassia, as I was so impressed with the few I planted last year both in pots and in the ground, and lots more narcissi and crocuses too. Good luck with all that planting!
That sounds like a nice color scheme. I keep meaning to plant Camassia but I never get around to it.
Nothing like Spring bulbs. I have one order on its way but really show try to get a few more. Love Princess Irene!
Spring would not be the same without bulbs, especially tulips!
You’ve chosen some beauties. I haven’t ordered this year thinking that I already have lots of bulbs in the ground. However, they’re calling my name so a few will come home with me tomorrow as a gift card at a local nursery is burning a hole in my pocket. Your tulips in pots idea is a great one and I’ll copy it this year. Easier than finding space in the crowded garden beds for bulbs!
Plus I always forget where I’ve planted the tulips in my beds.
Hello Jason, my favourite is the “Couleur Cardinal”, I love the two-tone red. We might miss the bulb-planting season again as we’re trying to finish off some smaller jobs and we’re rather tired from creating the corner border (and others) this year. At least I have your pots of tulips to look forward to in the spring!
‘Couleur Cardinal’ is irresistable – but then again, so are many others.
Yes, but no tulips, just daffodils. The gophers here are too fond of tulip bulbs!
Luckily we have no gophers here.