Holland is known throughout the world for both its tulips and other flowers. Hundreds of thousands of tourists from all over the world annually make a pilgrimage to the flowering fields and to the world-famous FloraHolland flower auctions located in the cities of Aalsmeer, Rijnsburg and Naaldwijk. In this article we will talk about what time of year you can find flowering fields and how to get to them, as well as about the flower exchange (available to visit all year round) and how it can be interesting for tourists. Your trip will become even more interesting with our application and our audio guide-walk around Amsterdam. Download!
Flower fields
First of all, it is worth noting that flower fields are not just scattered chaotically throughout the country, but are mainly concentrated around flower auctions and around the Keukenhof park. The location close to auctions is very pragmatic and allows farmers to quickly deliver their products for sale. The most visited among tourists are the fields of tulips, daffodils and hyacinths around Keukenhof, namely in Lisse. This is explained not only by the worldwide fame of the park itself, but also by the fact that Lisse is extremely easy to get to by bus from Lieden.
Let's look at the most famous flower fields and how to get to them.
- In Lisse, flower fields are located on the streets: Zwartelaan, Essenlaan, Loosterweg-Zuid and Herenweg. Getting to Lisse, as we already said, is quite simple. From Leiden by bus 50 (direction Haarlem),
- In Hillegom: Veenenburgerlaan, Zuider Leidsevaart and Derde Loosterweg. You can get there by train from Amsterdam Centraal.
- To Noordwijkerhout: Herenweg and Westeinde. You can get there from Leiden by bus 57 (direction Hillegom)
- In Zilk: Zilkerbinnenweg. Exactly the same as in Noordwijkerhout, just go a few stops further to Hoogduinweg.
An alternative option is to cycle along this route, called Bloemenbollenroute (known as the Flower Route). On a note! If you are in doubt about the best way to get there or you are faced with the problem of canceled or late transport, the website will help you plan your door-to-door trip. Simply enter your starting point and destination (city/street/postal code), as well as departure or arrival time and type of transport.
Flower auctions FloraHolland
Flower auctions of the FloraHolland association attract tourists from all over the world. FloraHolland is a stock exchange in the truest sense of the word. Only they trade there not in stocks or oil, but in flowers. These auctions are somewhat similar to an autonomous city, since work is in full swing around the clock. Inside each auction there is a cafe, relaxation and smoking areas, and even hairdressers. The attractive thing is that the auction is freely accessible to tourists. You can watch the work of buyers from a special gallery. Tourists at FloraHolland have a unique opportunity to find themselves in the center of the international flower trade.
As we have already said, the FloraHolland flower auction is located in three cities: Aalsmeer, Naaldwijk, Rijnsburg. You can visit any of them! However, it is considered that the auction in Aalsmeer is the most convenient to visit due to its size (the largest of the three) and its proximity to Schiphol airport. You can get from the airport by bus 198 (Direction Aalsmeer Hortensiaplein), leaving from Schiphol bus station. The auction is open to the public on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 7 to 11 am and on Thursdays from 7 to 9 am.
We recommend planning your visit as early as possible, since it is during the first hours of the opening that the auction is open. full power. FloraHolland is closed to the public on Saturdays, Sundays, national holidays and December 31st. If you decide not to use a guide, follow this route: From The Visitor Center, walk through the gallery through the auction complex. At the end of the gallery there are the main halls, where you can see how flowers are brought and sorted before they go directly to the auction itself. There are information panels throughout the gallery with explanations in four languages. If you want to use the services of guides, it makes sense to purchase Aalsmeer Combi-ticket, which includes a three-part excursion:
- 07.00: 1.5 hour tour of the auction
- 10.00: Visit to the historical garden in Aalsmeer
- 13:30: Boat trip along Westeinderplassen
The Aalsmeer Combi-ticket can be purchased from April 1 to October 2, 2015, from Tuesday to Friday. Ticket price for adults: €13.50, for children: €8.25.
If you are driving, please note that parking is free for auction visitors. It is located on the roof (follow the white sign P23).
Flowering season in Holland. When is the best time to go?
The flowering season for fields in Holland is considered to be between mid-March and mid-May. However, in reality, flowers simply do not tend to bloom on the same schedule every year. It all depends on the temperature. Therefore, if the winter turns out to be relatively warm, active flowering in most fields can be observed already in early April.
The Dutch themselves also monitor the beginning of the flowering season in the fields. Many even use a well-known website to monitor the blooms in the flower fields of Noordwijkerhout. Thanks to it, you can find out when the tulip fields are in their most beautiful flowering phase.
We advise you to pay attention to National Tulip Day, which takes place every year in Amsterdam on Dam Square. And this is far from the only flower festival in Holland! An overview of similar holidays with dates and programs is presented at
Today, the largest supplier of tulips in the world is the Netherlands. These luxurious flowers have long become a symbol of Holland. There is no other country in the world with such a wide variety of plants in shape, color and duration of flowering.
Dutch tulips are the standard of the highest quality and beauty. And just a few centuries ago their price was fabulous. For example, a brewery was traded for one plant bulb. Two good ones stone houses it was necessary to pay for three bulbs of beautiful flowers.
Pride of Holland
Over four centuries, Little Holland has achieved unprecedented success in breeding these exquisite flowers, becoming the main exporter of tulips, which many associate with the beginning of spring. This small country earns more than twenty-five billion dollars annually from floriculture. Dutch tulips, photos of which can be found in all publications for gardeners, are sent from this country to different countries. Their number accounts for 3/4 of all tulips sold in the world.
The Dutch Keukenhof Park is a kind of Mecca for flower growers. It can safely be called a flower kingdom. Every year a magnificent exhibition is held here, where the newest varieties of Dutch tulips are presented, original flower arrangements. And some lucky ones even manage to bring new Dutch tulips from the exhibition. 
However, you don’t have to go that far to get them - a huge number of different varieties can be bought today in Russian flower shops.
A little history
In 1554, the Austrian ambassador was on a visit to Turkey. The ambassador liked the amazingly bright carpets of delicate tulips that decorated the courtyard of the Sultan's estate so much that he purchased several bulbs and sent them to Vienna. At the Vienna Botanical Garden, the director at that time was a Dutch botanist, Clusius, who enthusiastically took up plant breeding and quickly achieved outstanding results.
Clusius gave the new varieties of tulips he developed to his friends, and he did not deprive his homeland of bulbs of magnificent flowers. A botanical garden was opened in the city of Leiden (Holland) in 1587, where the talented breeder continued to work on developing new varieties of tulips. 
The appearance of tulips from Holland in Russia
Dutch tulips, photos of which you can see in our article, began to arrive in our country (then the USSR) in commercial quantities in the 50s of the last century. In those days, the most popular varieties were Apeldoorn, Diplomat, Parade, etc.
The quality of flower bulbs has always been impeccable; Dutch producers adhered to contract terms very strictly, so purchases of tulips increased every year. Many varieties produced by the company "D. V. Lefeber" was developed by its founder, David Lefeber, by crossing his plants with "wild ones" from Russia. Thus, such varieties as Yuri Gagarin, In Memory of Lenin, Bolshoi Theater and others appeared. 
Variety of species and varieties
Listing just the names of varieties of Dutch tulips will take more than one page - in the international register their number reaches 2500. The main parameters of tulip varieties are flowering time, flower shape and peduncle height. According to the timing of flowering, they can be divided into:
According to the height of the peduncle they are divided into three groups:
Dutch tulips: planting and care
Like almost any plant, these flowers can be grown from seeds or bulbs. However, in last years Dutch tulips are practically not grown using the first method. Planting seeds is a long and troublesome task.
For young bulbs, make a long furrow ten centimeters deep in well-loosened soil. The earth should be moistened with a salt solution at the rate of two hundred grams per ten liters of water. Before planting, inspect the bulbs and remove any damaged ones. Then the selected material is soaked for half an hour in a solution of potassium permanganate. Pre-treat the soil with a foundation solution. Place the bulbs in the prepared furrow at a distance of four centimeters and sprinkle them with a thin layer of sand. 
Dutch tulips are planted at a depth of three centimeters. If the soil is too dense, then you can plant it a little higher; if it is too loose, then it is better to deepen the bulbs a little. The distance between rows should be at least twenty centimeters.
Boarding time
If you want to grow a flower bed or get flowers for bouquets, it is recommended to plant bulbs in the fall. By the time of planting, the soil temperature should drop to +10 °C. The planting time is calculated so that the bulb can take root within 2-3 weeks before frost. If tulips are planted earlier, they can begin to grow vigorously. As a result, they will not survive the winter well and will most likely die.
More late boarding will lead to the fact that the bulb will not take root and will not receive nutrition in winter and in early spring.
Spring planting
Dutch tulips, the cultivation of which is quite exciting process, can be planted in the spring, thereby simulating natural cycle. The bulbs are first placed in refrigerator(temperature +5 °C) for seven days. Then the usual processing is carried out before planting and planted, as in the first case.
Dutch tulips: care
These are moisture-loving plants. During flowering, frequent watering allows the plant to reach its maximum size. Moistening the soil for two weeks after flowering has completed will allow the bulb to grow and develop properly. Dutch tulips are watered from below. 
Water getting on the leaves can sometimes provoke the development of gray rot and other fungal diseases.
Tulips are usually fed twice during the season. After the first leaves appear on the plant, it is necessary to apply nitrogen fertilizers (ammonium nitrate, for example). But remember that an excess of nitrogen can reduce the plant’s immunity and damage the root system.
During the formation of buds, tulips need trace elements. Therefore, you can use complex fertilizers (“Kemira-lux”). Concentration – twenty grams per ten liters of water. Mullein strengthens plants.
New varieties
To the delight of flower growers, Dutch breeders annually spoil them with unique new products. Many varieties are appreciated by amateur flower growers. They decorate flower beds or use them to create a magnificent landscape design. Nowadays, there are many different trends and directions in tulip breeding, but increased interest remains in the shades of lilac and pink varieties (First Rosy, Cacharel, Jefgenia, Canberra, etc.). Below we will present you some new products from Dutch breeders.
This is a classic snow-white tulip. It has a neat and very compact bud. Refers to varieties of medium ripening. The flower has a beautiful goblet shape and a large bud. The stem is strong. The leaf is colored rich green. 
Beautytrend
This amazing variety will not leave anyone indifferent. It is distinguished by an interesting combination of colors. The white, goblet-shaped bud has a spectacular bright pink border. The variety is powerful and tall. The height of the peduncle reaches 70 cm. 
This is a new product on the flower market. However, the variety has already found fans among flower growers. The tulip has a spectacular purple colour with a white border. The flower is very large, its height reaches ten centimeters. Stem – 55 cm. Belongs to the medium-flowering group. 
This variety should be noted among the new products in pink color. The composition of the flower is delightful - the glass of the bud is painted in a bright pink color, with a delicate border of a lighter pink shade.
Another successful development by Dutch breeders. These flowers showed excellent results in the middle and early stages of forcing. The peduncle is powerful and strong. The height of the stem is 55 cm. The flower has a beautiful goblet shape, its height is 9 cm. The color is crimson, with a light edging. 
A plant with a powerful stem, 60 cm high. Colored in a delicate pinkish-lilac shade. The bud is up to 10 cm high. These tulips are very popular in the flower market. Refers to varieties of medium-term forcing.
It is necessary to highlight this spectacular variety in red colors. It combines bright red and yellow tones. This early variety. The height of the stem is 55 cm. A sharp transition of tones gives a special visual effect. It is enhanced by the vibrant green color of the foliage.
When to plant tulips
Tulips are perennial bulbous plants. Of the garden flowers, they are the first to bloom and serve as decoration for our garden plot. Tulips have fleshy, lanceolate leaves with a dark green color. The shape of flowers can also be different. Goblet-shaped, cup-shaped, peony-shaped, terry, and lily tulips are often found.
Tulips have been held in high esteem in the countries of Asia Minor since ancient times. The most famous poets of the East dedicated poems to these flowers: Saadi, Rudaki, Jami, Navoi, etc. The tulip was depicted for a long time on the coat of arms of the Ottoman dynasty.
Tulips are well suited for landscaping streets, gardens, courtyards, and parks. Flowers look good on loggias, balconies, alpine roller coaster and in curbs.
In this article we will try to figure out when to plant tulips correctly, at what depth and at what distance to plant them, and also whether it is possible to plant tulips in the summer.
When to plant tulips
Tulips are usually planted in the fall. In this case, it is very important to choose the optimal time to plant the bulbs. After all, before the onset of cold weather, tulips must have time to take root. Under good weather conditions, this process usually takes 20-30 days. If you plant tulip bulbs late, they will not take root well before frost, and in the spring the tulips will lag in growth and begin to bloom late, and later produce smaller bulbs. However, early planting of tulips is also dangerous. In this case, the tulips may germinate too early and simply freeze. It is believed that tulips can be planted if the temperature of the ground at a depth of 10 cm drops to 10 degrees. Therefore, it is better to plant tulips in late September or early October.
If you suddenly missed all the planting deadlines, try experimenting: in the absence of snow and frost, you can plant tulips even in early December. Planting tulips before winter has a bad effect on the bulb, but there is still hope to see blooming tulips in the spring.
When frost sets in, it is advisable to mulch the planted bulbs with straw, dry leaves, peat or compost. Although tulips are considered frost-resistant plants, additional shelters have a beneficial effect on their growth and development: flower stalks become stronger, and the yield of bulbs increases.
Our readers often ask, is it possible to plant tulips in spring? There is also an answer to this question. You can plant tulips in April. It is, of course, a bit late to plant bulbs at this time, but not critical. For those who are going to plant tulips in the spring, there is a certain planting technology.
Place the bulbs you bought or saved from the fall in the refrigerator overnight. This procedure is reminiscent of preparing tulips for planting. After cooling, rinse the bulbs with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Now you need to plant the tulips close to each other at a depth of five centimeters. In the same way, you can plant tulips in a box or box and keep them on the balcony. Flowering during spring planting will be much later, but this is better than nothing at all.
How to plant tulips correctly
Illuminated areas of land, protected from strong winds, are best suited for planting tulips. If shadow constantly falls on the flowerbed where the tulips grow, the plants become weak, the stems become thin, and the large bulbs become smaller. Despite this, tulips are unpretentious flowers. It is advisable to plant them in beds with sandy loam soil. The growth and flowering of tulips is favorably affected by the addition of rotted compost, as well as wood ash based on 200 g/sq.m. m. If the soil is considered heavy for tulips, the situation can be corrected by adding river sand, compost and adding fertile soil. But it is prohibited to bring fresh manure into a flower bed with tulips. This will lead to rapid rotting of the bulbs and the development of fungal infections.
At what distance should tulips be planted? The optimal width of the bed should be no more than 90 cm. Before planting the bulbs, transverse grooves should be made on it at a distance of 20-30 cm. For children, this distance can be reduced by 15-18 cm. Tulips should be planted deep into the ground. The planting depth for large bulbs should be 10-15 cm, and for small ones - 5-7 cm.
Once the grooves are formed, use a watering can to water them hot water with potassium permanganate to prevent the development of infection. Now place the bulbs in them. Large planting material should be placed at a distance of 10-15 cm from each other, and small bulbs can be more crowded.
If the soil is heavy and prone to stagnation of moisture, 3 cm of river sand should be poured into the bottom of the furrows to improve drainage and prevent the bulbs from getting wet. After planting the bulbs, level the ground with a rake so that there are no holes where water can get into. If the fall is dry, water the tulips deeply 10 days after planting to allow the bulbs to develop a good root system.
Tulips should be replanted in their original location approximately every 5 years. But if you do not have the opportunity to constantly change the location of the flower bed, then try to pay more attention to the prevention of diseases and pests that may be in the soil.
Tulips - the smile of spring. How to grow tulips
Tulips. There are perhaps no other plants whose mention evokes such a mass of positive emotions. Even small children know that with the first spring sun and Mother's Day, these bright and fragrant flowers always come to the house. Scatterings of tulips enliven city squares, village front gardens and numerous country flower beds with lush strokes, pleasing the eye after boring and gray winter days.
Tulip belongs to the perennial herbaceous bulbous plants of the Liliaceae family. Its height, depending on the group and variety, can vary from 10 cm to 1 meter. The region of origin of the species is the mountainous regions, semi-deserts and steppes of Central Asia.
Is it easy to grow a tulip?
Talking about tulips, someone admires him unpretentiousness and simplicity of agricultural technology, and someone complains indignantly about constant failures in an attempt to grow this perennial. Who is right? To find the truth, let's briefly look at the structure of the tulip and its life cycle, and also turn to the roots of its origin.
If you approach growing tulips from the point of view of a person knowledgeable in the botanical features of the tulip, then you can easily identify your mistakes, eliminate them and make sure that growing a healthy tulip is very simple.
What you need to know about tulip bulbs - myths and reality
The figure below shows the structure of a tulip bulb.
- Despite the timing, plant tulips in the ground until the end of November, slightly increasing the planting depth (up to 20 cm). After watering, mulch the plantings with peat or dry leaves. The likelihood of winter plant loss in this case decreases.
- Use the bulbs for early spring forcing on the windowsill, having previously consulted special tables on the timing of cooling and setting for germination.
- Store tulips in a cold basement all winter, and in early spring plant the bulbs in the warmest part of the plot, where the soil has thawed a little. Tulips may bloom in this case, but the flowering time will shift closer to summer.
How to choose the right place
Tulips are children of mountains and semi-deserts. This should not be forgotten when planning a place to plant a spring flower garden. Only when good lighting the plant will take on the color and shape corresponding to the variety.
With a lack of sun, the peduncle will be curved, the flower will be small and partially deformed. An insufficient amount of nutrients will be deposited in the storage scales, which can lead to the appearance of weak replacement bulbs, and then to a complete loss of the variety.
The planting site should be dry, without prolonged stagnation of moisture (however, regular watering during drought must also be ensured). If the bulbs are left in damp soil for a long time, they will develop fungal and bacterial infections and die.
If the soil is dense and clayey, be sure to add raising agents - peat, sand, vermiculite.
Another important addition is that the predecessor in the garden bed (in the flower garden) should not be classified as a bulbous plant, otherwise there is a high probability of viral or fungal diseases.
At what depth are tulips planted?
When planting tulips in the ground, as when planting many ephemeroids, they are guided by the rule of height of 3 bulbs. Measure three times the size from the bottom and dig a planting hole of exactly that depth. For tulips, this value is usually 15 cm. A little sand is added to the bottom to drain the area of the bulbous bottom. Young children are planted in accordance with this rule at a shallower depth.
If the bulbs are excessively deepened, the flower does not grow so large, and the children are small and bloom weakly.
What interval is maintained when landing?
Bulbs located next to each other should be at a distance of at least 2 sizes (10 cm) from each other. The larger the bulb, the farther apart they are planted, otherwise the plants, competing for light and food, are quickly crushed.
To organize a group, very effective planting of tulips, dig one common hole, fill it with fertilizers and arrange the bulbs evenly.
Nowadays, tiered flower beds have become very popular, when hyacinths are planted as the bottom layer, and smaller bulbs of poultry, muscari or chionodox are laid on top of lightly sprinkled tulips.
Location in the flower garden and neighboring plants
First of all, you need to decide on the composition of the composition in which the tulips will be included. If early spring flowering is envisaged (for example, with muscari or early daffodils), then select varieties early date, well combined in color - contrasting or monochrome (one shade). Typically, double yellow varieties of tulips look good with bright blue muscari, and white and bright red varieties look good with sunny daffodils.
Late-blooming tulips are selected in combination with groundcovers that are rampant at this time - arabis, phlox splayed, parsley, as well as forget-me-nots, bergenia and late daffodils.
If annuals are planted in place of faded tulips, then in this case special baskets for bulbous ones are used. These plastic nets are convenient because plants that have lost their appearance can be easily moved to a secluded place for the bulbs to ripen.
Tulips are often planted with perennials with powerful foliage (hostas, paniculata phlox, meadow geraniums). Growing by the time the tulips dry out, they perfectly decorate the unsightly appearance of the bulbous ones.
Video "Planting tulips."
To ensure a quick and friendly start in the spring, for autumn digging apply fertilizers with a predominance of potassium and phosphorus (“Autumn Fasco” or slow-acting granules (for example, “AVA”).
in spring tulips should be fed with urea solution, and in the second half of May with superphosphate. Fertilizing is combined with watering or carried out after rain.
During the growing season and flowering, tulips require sufficient soil moisture, but without waterlogging, which can result in plant damage to various diseases.
In addition, excess moisture leads to cracks appearing on the bulbs, which, of course, deteriorates the quality of the bulb and, subsequently, the plant; moreover, such a bulb is stored worse.
Lack of moisture depletes the plant, it produces smaller and less beautiful flowers, and also forms fewer daughter bulbs.
That's why correct mode watering is important. Tulips are watered infrequently, up to 3 times during the growing season, this applies even to the southern regions. But at the same time, each watering should be plentiful, water consumption is approximately 50 liters per 1 sq. meter. The water should reach a depth of 30-35 cm, where the roots of the bulbs are located.
The myth about “cross-pollination” of tulips
The most common complaint among beginning gardeners is: “I have everything beautiful tulips cross-pollinated and became common.” This was discussed above when they said that cross-pollination of one variety with another does not in any way affect the cloning of the bulb’s children through vegetative propagation.
However, the fact that over time the chic parrot, lily-flowered, fringed varieties are being replaced by ordinary simple ones is obvious, and it happens very often. What's the matter?
And the problem, as a rule, is the elementary laziness of summer residents, coupled with a lack of knowledge on tulip agricultural technology. Its most important rule says: in order for plants to always be beautiful, powerful and consistent with the variety, they need to be:
Digging up tulips and storing
This means that you need to wait until the outflow of nutrients from the leaves into the scales occurs, a replacement bulb and children are formed. As a rule, this period occurs at the end of June - beginning of July. If you are late, the nest will fall apart and many babies will be lost; if you dig it up earlier, the new bulb will not have time to ripen. How to find the golden mean? Use the old Dutch method: if the tulip stem has lost its fragility and easily wraps around your finger, feel free to dig!
This means sorting by bulb size and grade. As a rule, simple tulips (especially red ones) are very stable and unpretentious, produce many stolons with children and literally displace the weak and pampered ones, which are modern varietal specimens. Hence the myth of “cross-pollination”. As soon as the grower begins to mark the best varieties beacons and dig up in time, spring will immediately begin to be colored only with your favorite colors.
The dug up and sorted bulbs are placed in lattice boxes and dried for 2-3 days under a canopy. Then they are laid out in 2 rows, interleaved with newspapers, and sent to a moderately warm (25 ° C) and ventilated place (attic, barn). There they will be stored until September, periodically subject to review and rejection of dry and rotten children.
Plant in due time
Let us repeat once again that when planting tulips it is important to observe correct timing listed in the section “When to plant tulips”
History of a flower
Among the ephemeroids grown in our gardens (the so-called plants with a short growing season), tulips confidently occupy a leading position. Not a single early flowering perennial can compete with them in the beauty of the flower, variety of shapes, and unpretentiousness.
Europe has been admiring this magnificent plant for just under 500 years. Trial batches of tulips brought by Byzantine merchants to Vienna in the 26th century quickly gained recognition among European flower growers. Obviously, traders, when purchasing scatterings of bulbs in their homeland - the territory of present-day Kazakhstan, did not even imagine that this product would be more promising than spices and silks.
The flower-tulip fever that swept through Holland, France, and Italy at that time testified to the extreme popularity of the new perennial. She raised the poor to the crest of wealth and plunged the rich into the abyss of bankruptcy. The craze for tulips has given rise to hundreds of new incredible shapes and varieties, from the mysterious “black tulips” to the fantastically unusual parrot and fringed ones.
The Netherlands has still remained true to its love for these beautiful bulbous plants and is a confident leader in sales around the world, offering planting material in millions of quantities every year.
Tulips: successful experience of planting bulbs in frozen ground
Tulips and irises are the flowers of my childhood!
I grew up in the south of Ukraine. In early spring, our steppe, which lies near the Askania-Nova nature reserve, turned into a bright floral sea of red tulips...
But wild yellow tulips were very rare here.
In the spring, natural irises, small and low, also bloomed in our steppe.
The admiration of the spring steppe with blooming tulips cannot be described in words!
Therefore, since childhood, I have really loved tulips. These festive harbingers of spring have become indispensable inhabitants of my garden.
Our dacha is located near Kharkov, 40 km to the north.
Growing tulips in the garden brings me a lot of joy. Every year I ordered or simply bought new tulip bulbs at the local market to decorate my garden. And in recent years, planting material for a wide variety of tulips, and other beautiful flowering plants.
Now there are so many tulips of all classes on sale, a great variety of elegant varieties! I hope that one day my dream of growing blue tulips will come true.
Along with the abundance of varieties of tulips, we are pleased with the huge variety of all kinds and varieties of irises for the garden. From these, every gardener can create wonderful collections to suit his taste.
The only obstacle for me now is a catastrophic lack of time.
In the photo: colorful tulips; yellow and yellow-pink tulips; unusual coloring of a tulip
Experiment with planting tulips in the garden in winter
Planting tulip bulbs is usually carried out in the fall, when the soil temperature reaches +5...+10 degrees, and there is about 1.5 months left before the soil in the garden begins to freeze. During this period, the planted tulips take root well, which allows the bulbs to successfully overwinter and bloom in the spring, at a time characteristic of this variety.
However, many gardeners quite often encounter the situation that spring-flowering bulbs were not planted in the garden on time in the fall. The favorable time for planting has long passed - cold weather has set in, and ground-binding frosts are not uncommon.
Then there arises Difficult choice: Should I still take the risk and plant the bulbs in the garden at such a very late date, or force the bulbs, or try to save them and plant them in the spring?
Once upon a time we faced such a problem.
Several years ago my husband went to Holland and returned from there at the very beginning of winter. He brought 30 tulip bulbs from Amsterdam. Although I knew that it was too late to plant these bulbs in the garden, I coveted blue tulips.
Having opened the packages of Dutch tulips, we discovered that almost all the bulbs already had the beginnings of sprouts!
I started consulting with specialists on how best to deal with such bulbs. I was offered to plant tulips for forcing. However, this option did not suit me.
Firstly, not all varieties of tulips are suitable for forcing.
Secondly, properly prepared bulbs are used for forcing.
Thirdly, successful forcing of tulips is possible only if the necessary maintenance conditions are observed, which must be provided to the bulbs planted in pots.
And then my husband and I made an unconventional decision at our own peril and risk: try to plant tulip bulbs in the garden in winter and then reliably insulate the plantings.
It was already the middle of the month (December 14), when we went to the dacha to plant tulips.
I cleared the snow from a free area of the garden. The husband used a crowbar to lift the top layer of frozen soil so that a place could be prepared for planting tulip bulbs.
We dug up the soil at the bottom of the planting hole and planted all the Dutch tulip bulbs to a depth of at least 20 cm.
After covering the planted bulbs with regular garden soil, we returned the frozen soil to its place. Then the place where the tulips were planted was covered with branches and dry leaves, covered with film and covered with snow.
In the spring, in March, I went to the garden to remove the film that had been exposed by the melted snow from the tulip plantings so that it would not have a greenhouse effect.
Then the insulating layer of branches and leaves was removed from the tulip bed.
Imagine our joy when, when the weather warmed up, sprouts of “winter” tulips appeared from the ground :)
Our risky experiment was a success: of the 30 bulbs planted in winter, the vast majority sprouted in the spring. 29 Dutch tulips have risen and bloomed wonderfully!
True, their flowering occurred a little later than all the other tulips growing in our garden. But this is even better. After all, every gardener dreams of extending the flowering period of tulips, which brightly decorate our gardens and homes in the spring.
In the photo: various tulips; tulips in a bouquet
Blue Dream
The only thing that upset me was that there were no blue tulips in the Dutch batch of bulbs...
However, we were very pleased with the result. After all, the bulbs placed in extreme conditions successfully overwintered in our garden, all the tulips were very beautiful!
But I haven’t been able to buy tulip bulbs with blue flowers yet. Any kind of flowers bloom, but I still don’t have blue tulips. Although all sellers swear that blue flowers will definitely grow from their bulbs.
Weekly Free Digest of the Gardenia.ru Site
Every week, for 10 years, for our 100,000 subscribers, an excellent selection of relevant materials about flowers and gardens, as well as other useful information.
How and when is it better to plant tulip seeds and bulbs: cultivation and care
Currently there are about 1800 decorative varieties tulips, which significantly exceeds the number of varieties of serviceberry and camellia species.
Most of them were bred by breeders in flower farms in Holland. Many varieties have been successfully acclimatized and are grown well in central Russia.
Main types of decorative tulips
The most important parameters of the varieties of this plant are the flowering period, the height of the peduncle and the shape of the flower.
Classification of tulip varieties by flowering time:
Classification of varieties according to the height of the peduncles:
Features of varieties by type of flower:
Goblet tulips from seeds
Parrot tulip planted in autumn
- In the first spring, a single tubular leaf grows from the seeds, similar to an onion seedling. By autumn, the main root and several roots are formed.
- In the second year, a stolon is formed from the main root, which will subsequently form a bulb and deepen it. The first true flat leaf grows on the surface.
- In the third year, further development and growth of the bulb occurs. The first babies may appear. Some varieties may begin to bloom, but flowering will slow down the overall development of the tulip and will be inferior - weak and small.
- In wet weather, young shoots and bulbs are threatened slugs and snails. Tobacco dust is effective against them.
- Medvedka, Khrushchi(Chafer beetle larvae) gnaw out roots and bulbs. Digging and loosening the soil is effective for destruction. Traps are placed on the mole cricket.
- Wireworms(larvae of click beetles) damage tulip bulbs by gnawing tunnels. This beetle prefers areas densely overgrown with weeds and highly acidic soil. Therefore, getting rid of it is quite easy - remove weeds, add ash, lime and ammonium nitrate to the soil, loosen and dig up the area more often.
- Greenhouse aphid. Drinks juice from young leaves and peduncles, which greatly weakens the plant. But the most unpleasant thing is that aphids are carriers of many viral diseases.
Aphids are destroyed using pesticides.
Plant bulbs
How to plant young bulbs
For young tulip bulbs, a furrow is made in the loosened soil to a depth of 10 cm. The soil is moistened with a salt solution - one glass per 10-liter bucket of water. The bulbs are kept in a strong solution of potassium permanganate for 15 minutes, laid out in a row at a distance of 3-4 cm from each other and sprinkled with sand.
The tulip produces its first true flowering in the fifth year after sowing the seeds. At 6-7 years the plant reaches its maturity and the color of the buds becomes brighter.
How to propagate tulips from bulbs
An adult tulip bulb produces one replacement bulb and 2-3 daughter bulbs per season. Some varieties are more productive. To encourage the development of more daughter bulbs and an increase in their size, flowers at the bud stage are cut off and the leaves are left.
After the above-ground part of the plant has completely withered, the bulbs are dug up and divided. It is imperative to inspect each bulb. Damaged by pests, with signs of fungal diseases, or very small ones are immediately rejected and destroyed. It is better to separate the remaining bulbs into 2 piles: for growing and for cutting.
Suitable for tulips, as well as anemones, read about planting and caring for them here http://2gazon.ru/ozelenenie/cvety/anemona-posadka-i-uxod.html, soils with neutral or slightly alkaline Ph.
Acidic soils inhibit tulips. Sand should be added to clay soils (up to two buckets of sand per square meter) and lime (50 grams per square meter).
Shallow loosening to remove weeds is done periodically, especially after watering or rain. The crust that forms on the ground after it dries interferes with the development of the root system of tulips.
Before planting, the bulbs are inspected and rejected. Selected planting material is soaked for 30 minutes in a solution of potassium permanganate.
There are two possible answers to the question of when is the best time to plant tulips. If your goal is a flower bed or cut flowers, plant in the fall. The soil temperature should drop to 7-10 degrees.
Planting dates should be calculated so that the bulb has 2-3 weeks to take root before frost. If you plant tulips earlier, they may begin to grow intensively and will not overwinter well or die. If it is later, the bulb will not have time to take root and will not receive the necessary nutrition in winter and early spring.
How to plant tulips in spring
Nature can be deceived by imitating the natural cycle. The bulbs are placed for a week in a refrigerator at a temperature of +5 degrees. After this, pre-planting treatment is carried out and planted as usual.
Watering after planting
Tulips are quite moisture-loving, like grown astilbe flowers. Frequent watering during flowering allows the flower to reach its maximum size. Moistening the soil for two weeks after flowering stimulates the growth of the replacement bulb.
Watered from below. If water gets on the leaves, it can provoke the development of fungal diseases, in particular gray rot. Since the bulb with its root system can be located in the ground at a depth of up to 50 centimeters, it needs to be watered abundantly.
Tulips are fed with fertilizers 2-3 times. When the first leaves appear, nitrogen fertilizers (for example, ammonium nitrate) are applied. Overfeeding with nitrogen fertilizers reduces plant immunity and harms the root system.
During the period of bud formation, flowers need microelements. Therefore you need to feed complex fertilizers type "Kemira-lux" in a concentration of 20 grams per 10 liters of water. The addition of mullein strengthens plants well.
Cut flowers
The most common mistake Beginner gardeners - tulips are cut too close to the ground. The tulip bulb ceases to develop, which was ensured by photosynthesis by the above-ground part of the plant. Such a bulb may die or not produce full flowering next year. When cutting correctly, no more than 1-2 leaves should be cut from the peduncle.
Preventative treatment is also required gardening tools. When cutting, viral diseases are often transmitted from plant to plant.
Digging and storing tulip bulbs
After the above-ground part of the plant dies (July - August), tulip bulbs are dug up, discarded, treated with a fungicide or kept in a dark solution of potassium permanganate for 30 minutes, and immediately dried well. It is very important that after treatment the bulbs do not begin to grow, since the root system of tulips does not renew if damaged. Dry onions are placed in containers in one or two layers and stored in a cool, dry place.
Plant diseases
Gray rot
Often this disease affects tulips, as well as spirea, a video of planting and caring for which can be seen in the material, late flowering in cold and wet weather. Rot spreads to nearby plants like wildfire. Action should be taken at the first signs of infection. 
Externally, the onset of the disease manifests itself in the form of brown spots on the leaves, then the spots twitch with a gray coating of fungal spores. Plant growth slows down or stops completely. Rot affects not only the above-ground part of the plant, but also the bulb.
To treat gray rot, use a 0.2% solution of foundationazole or a strong solution of potassium permanganate. Repeated treatment is carried out after 10 days.
This disease does not manifest itself so clearly, affecting primarily the underground part of the plant. The roots die and the tulip bulb is damaged. The plant weakens, the leaves die off, and the flowers do not develop.
Sick plants must be destroyed. After digging, tulip bulbs are carefully inspected. Bulbs affected by fusarium often show bad smell. If there are light brown or brown spots on the bottom of the bulb, they are also destroyed.
Sclerotial rot
With this disease, the bulb becomes covered with a white or gray coating that looks like felt. The diseased plant is significantly stunted in growth and then rots.
Such plants must be dug up and destroyed.
The soil within a radius of 15 cm from the source of infection is treated with the drug Tiazone. Digging the soil to a depth of 30 cm is required.
Variegation
A viral disease that weakens the plant. The bulbs and above-ground parts of plants become smaller and degrade. If the variety of your tulips does not genetically provide for variegated petals, such plants should be discarded. On yellow and white varieties, manifestations of the virus are quite difficult to notice. The disease is indicated by young green leaves, on which lighter veins and yellow stripes appear along the leaf blade.
The motley mosaic virus quickly infects closely growing tulip specimens. The main carriers of the virus are aphids and untreated garden tools.
In addition to bacterial, viral or fungal diseases, tulips can suffer from pests:
Various varieties of spring flowers
But if you follow all the tips and recommendations correctly, then you can grow tulips on summer cottage no problem whenever you decide to plant them.
The most famous location for a photo shoot in tulip fields is, of course, the Dutch Royal Tulip Park Keukenhof. Almost every girl, woman, and grandmother dreams of coming here. By the way, there are more men among Chinese visitors.
The park was founded in 1840. It is located 30 km from Amsterdam, in the town of Lisse. And it works a little less than 2 months a year - from late March to mid-May. In 2018, the park will be open from March 22 to May 13.
Already at the entrance to the city of Lisse, huge tulip fields begin. But in this part of the country they are cut early; in May the picture in the fields looks like this:
But the fields can still be found along the highway in the north of the Netherlands, around the cities of Drachten and Groningen.
Today in Holland, more than 22 thousand hectares of land are allocated for growing tulips, on which about three billion flowers grow. Two thirds of them are exported, and only one third remains in the country. Tulips are the Netherlands' most important export product. By the way, the first tulips were brought from Constantinople in the 1550s. It’s amazing how flowers born in Asia have gotten along and taken root in the northern country.
In the Lisse area you can see huge harvesters cutting ripe tulips and packaging those that have passed computer quality control into bouquets. And those that do not meet the quality remain by the wayside
Next to the park there is a market where a variety of fresh bouquets and bulbs are many times larger than those at the famous Bloemenmarkt flower market in the center of Amsterdam. Here is a bouquet of 50 tulips in Lisse costs 3-5 euros, in Amsterdam 10 euros:
And we waste no time and go into the park.
The entrance ticket costs 16-17 euros, parking costs 6 euros. There are transfers to the park by bus or train from Amsterdam Airport, Central Station and Haarlem. In this case, tickets are combined and range from 24.5 to 35 euros (depending on the starting point, the cost for a round trip). Read more about transfers.
We arrived by car on May 5th. We were afraid to see only withered flower beds, but we were lucky with cold weather a week before our trip.
We admire the pictures:
There should have been colorful fields of tulips in this place, but there were only pale daffodils. The tulips have already been cut. The park has 3 panoramic platforms from which it should open beautiful view to the fields in April, but not May:
Different varieties. By the way, the main pride of a Dutchman is that they will call you after you new variety tulips.
Postcards for all women's holidays are ready for many years to come:
The main flowerbed meets us at the entrance to the park:
Landscape of the park. Please also note the small number of visitors. We arrived at about 15:00. The park closes at 19:30. We ran almost until closing, we missed something, but we still had a lot of impressions:
And we luckily got to the flowering fruit trees. The tulip fields were missed, but the trees in combination with the flower beds were simply wow:
style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;">
The visitor fits harmoniously into the background
Recently, helicopter rides have also been organized in the park.
In addition to flower beds and fields, the park has 3 indoor greenhouses where flower festivals are organized. In 2017, we couldn’t take our eyes off the colorful bouquets in one of the pavilions: 
The scenery is very cool:
You should definitely visit the pavilions!
Orchid Pavilion: 
So, you should definitely visit the Royal Tulip Park at least once! It operates from late March to mid-May. Specifically, each year you need to check the opening dates on the park’s website.
Tickets to Amsterdam from the most popular cities:
In general, interesting price offers for this period (March-May) appear around January. KLM airline regularly launches sales on air tickets after the winter holidays.
Accommodation in Amsterdam itself costs above the European average, but you can look for some very interesting hotels further away from Amsterdam itself. Thus, see a country that is very different from the capital.
We traveled all over the Netherlands from Belgium (Antwerp) to Germany (Bremen). Incredible and very interesting. Therefore, in addition to Amsterdam, you can include the following cities in your trip:
1. The Hague. We are delighted with the Madurodam miniature park and the embankment. Interesting places to visit are the Louwman Museum and the Peace Palace.
2. Rotterdam captivates with modern architecture. And the Kinderdijk mill complex.
3. The Belgian-Dutch town of Baarle-Hertog, walking through which you cross the border between Belgium and the Netherlands 24 times!!!
4. An open-air park with mills and local industries in Zaandam
By the way, this entire route with a visit to Keukenhof (Tulip Park) took us only 3 days. But it’s not worth repeating)))
Route St. Petersburg - Paris for 3 weeks, through 8 countries
Have a pleasant trip and lots of impressions to YOU!
How much do flowers cost in Amsterdam? Report from the Flower Market
Well, spring has come! Of course, no one knows what surprises the weather may still throw at us. But I want to think about the good: very soon March 8th, houses and offices will be filled with flowers, and life will sparkle with new colors. On the eve of March 8th, we decided to go to the market, see what flowers you can buy at the beginning of spring and how much they cost O yat in Amsterdam.
We went to get bouquets. If you wish, you can feel spring here almost 365 days a year. The market itself is designed more for tourists than for local residents (you will meet the latter more likely). But it is easy to find, it is on the must-see list of most travelers - and the choice of flowers here, if you come after bringing a new batch, is excellent.
The first thing we, of course, look at are tulips. By the way, in Holland they, and many other flowers, are sold not one at a time, but in bouquets (10 pieces) or whole armfuls (50 pieces). Oh, how they creak and crunch when you carry them in your arms!
On the day of our visit to the Flower Market, tulips were sold at prices ranging from 5 to 15 euros for 50 pieces.
Bouquets for 5 euros seem to be completely unsightly. But, in fact, at home, in the warmth, the buds will open - and literally the next morning they will look completely different. One drawback is that today we are only offered yellow ones.
There are also tulips on the market at a price of 15 euros for 50 pieces. On my subjective view, externally the difference between them and the flowers for 6 euros is felt insignificantly.
I probably won’t be wrong when I say that for us, people from Russian-speaking countries, the tulip is the herald of the coming of spring. And yet, if you want to please yourself or your loved ones with other flowers, then there is plenty to choose from on the market (even in late winter and early spring!).
For example, you can be original and buy amaryllis (1.50 euros per piece) or strelitzia.
Roses of all sizes and colors cost 5 – 6.50 euros for 10 pieces.
You can, of course, aim for a million red roses. But you can, modestly and tastefully, buy a bouquet of impressive size for reasonable money.
Peony tulips sell for €4.50 per bouquet.
You can make a more original choice and leave the market with a bouquet of sunflowers (not for nothing that we are in our homeland!) at a price of 6.50 euros per bouquet.
Or ranunculus ( Asian buttercup) costing 10 euros for 50 pieces.
By the way, you can take a bouquet of flowers, unlike plants with roots, on board a plane of many airlines. Good opportunity bring such bright greetings from Holland for someone close to you!
True, as one girl said well, “don’t give us flowers - give us the opportunity to see how they grow.” Considering that on the eve of March 8, a bouquet of 50 tulips in many CIS cities will cost approximately the same as a ticket to Amsterdam, in my opinion, this is a good idea :)
In the coming months in Amsterdam and the surrounding area you can:
- visit (during April 2019)
- visit
A trip to the tulip fields is a chance to be surrounded by a whole sea of flowers, which doesn’t happen so often. In April - early May there is such an opportunity in Holland. Come and be sure to take advantage of it!
When do tulip fields bloom in Holland?
The start of the tulip season greatly depends on how cold the winter and spring will be. Naturally, this is unpredictable, so it is impossible to guarantee exactly when tulips will bloom in 2020.
However, as a guide, based on the experience of previous years: the greatest chances of catching the tulip fields in full bloom are from about the 20th of April to the second week of May.
For how and where in this moment You can follow the blooms of tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths on the FlowerRadar website.
Where to find tulip fields in Holland?
The fields are located in the area of the towns of Lisse, Hillegom, Noordwijkerhout, Zilk. More precise coordinates of the fields blooming at the time of your visit can be found, again, on the FlowerRadar website.
If you're traveling without a car, here are two of the best simple ways get to the flower fields:
Maps of cycling routes through the tulip fields are also available.
Is it possible to go to the tulip fields?
Let's be honest, farmers are not always delighted with the fact that a flood of people wishing to make beautiful photos. In some fields there are signs asking you not to walk on them, because... Sensitive varieties of flowers grow there, and shoe soles can become infected. In other cases, fields are often surrounded by a ditch filled with water.
However, among the flower fields you can find those that have open access. According to unspoken rules, you can go there. Naturally, you should respect the work of farmers and treat flowers with care. You cannot pick tulips in the fields!
Helicopter tours over tulip fields
Do you want something completely unusual? Order helicopter tour over tulip fields. The cost of the tour is 129 euros per person.
Please note: Helicopter tours are available just a few days for the entire season: April 4, April 11, April 12, April 18, April 25 and April 26, 2020. Limited number of seats. You can check the program and book a tour.
Where else can you see blooming tulips in Holland?
Of course, in the Royal Park of Flowers. In 2020, Keukenhof will be open from March 21 to May 10. Opening hours: from 8.00 to 19.30. Ticket offices are open until 18.00.
You can buy tickets online, which will significantly save you time entering the park.
You may also be interested in:
Where to stay when traveling to Keukenhof? Check out hotels in Lisse, Noordwijk, Leiden and Haarlem. From all these cities it is easy to get to Keukenhof.
