Written by Rona Wheeldon
February 20, 2018
Single, Double, Parrot, French Parrot and Fringed...all different types of tulips which you can currently find in abundance at New Covent Garden Flower Market.
Wraps upon wraps of this popular bloom in a myriad of colours are available from all of our flower wholesalers. Whilst at our plant wholesalers you'll find potted bulbs, plus even artificial varieties at our sundries specialists!
Background
Part of the Liliaceae family, the bloom's botanical name is Tulipa, derived from the Turkish word for turban, 'tulbend', due to the shape of the flower resembling this traditional form of headwear.
Colours include white, red, yellow, pink, purple, lilac and orange. Plus, there are also striped and bi-coloured types. Double varieties are particularly popular, including Red Princess and Orange Princess. And quantity wise, tulips generally come in wraps of 50 stems, with French tulips coming in bunches of 10 stems.
They're usually on sale from October/November through to May/June. But now is their peak season. There's also a limited supply available from July to September, when they can be ordered in for you.
Tulips continue to grow in water. So, if you decide to arrange them with other flowers, depending on the style of your design, you may wish to recess them slightly to account for this. Be also aware that tulips are phototropic, which means that their flower heads tend to grow towards the light.
Types
FLOWERS
British
Single
Coquette
White Liberstar
Thijs Boots
Denmark
Furand
Escape
Strong Love
Frontline
Bullit
Ronaldo
Ronaldo Unique
Double
Red Princess
Warren Buffett
Double Princess
Marie Jo
Parrot
Parrot Prince
Air
French Parrot
La Courtine
Avignon Parrot
Flaming Parrot
Fringed
Purple Crystal
POTTED BULBS
Bruno Liljefors is the name of the variety pictured below. But you'll also find several others at our plant wholesalers including Popcorn (white), Baby Blue (purple) and Peach Blossom (pink).
ARTIFICIAL
Silk tulips are available at our sundries wholesalers, including single and parrot.
Design Inspiration
Tulips look wonderful either massed on their own in a bouquet or combined with other seasonal flowers. Here are some examples of gorgeous designs featuring single, double, parrot and French varieties...
(Source : McQueens)
(Source : Simon Lycett)
(Source : Urban Flower Co.)
(Source : JamJar Flowers)
(Source : Rebel Rebel)
(Source : Shane Connolly)
(Source : Zita Elze)
(Source : Paul Thomas Flowers)
(Source : Jens Jakobsen)
(Source : Tony Marklew)
Your Designs
We'd love to see photos of arrangements that you've made using tulips from the Flower Market. Simply send an email to hello@cgma.co.uk, stating your company name and website address. Or if you prefer, you could post your photo on Instagram or Twitter and tag us with @MarketFlowers. We'll then upload your photos into this section.
(Source: MeadowSweet)
(Source: Vendela Rose)
(Source: Maddisons Florist)
(Source: Hartley's Nurseries)
I hope you've enjoyed reading this month's florist's guide. Please do ask away below if you have any questions or would like to make any general comments. As always, we'd love to hear from you...
P.S. For even more varieties of this well-known bloom, please do check out our previous Product Profile.
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