Originally growing wild in the valleys of the Tien Shan Mountains, tulips were cultivated in Constantinople as early as 1055. The name 'tulip' came from the Turkish word for turban. The breaking of flowers occurs when a virus suppresses anthocyanin and the base colour is exposed as a streak.[3]. australis as a native of the Iberian peninsula and adjacent North Africa shows that this may be a simplification. Working with a multitude of species tulips gathered from diverse quarters of the empire, Ottoman gardeners took advantage of the species' felicitous propensity to cross freely with each other. The Dutch regarded this lack of scent as a virtue, as it demonstrates the flower's chasteness. Commercial growers usually harvest the tulip bulbs in late summer and grade them into sizes; bulbs large enough to flower are sorted and sold, while smaller bulbs are sorted into sizes and replanted for sale in the future. Because many of these early hybrids' ancestors had grown about the walls of the city, by this time renamed Istanbul, they became known as Istanbul tulips. The trade drifted slowly from the French to the Dutch and is thought to have sparked the infamous tulip mania in Holland.[40]. The entire Dutch economy was seriously damaged by the event and recovery took years.

The Black Tulip is a historical romance by Alexandre Dumas, père.

Other famous early crosses had evocative names like “The Matchless Pearl,” “Diamond's Envy,” and “Rose of the Dawn.” The Ottomans had developed a virtual cult around the tulip in all its levels—from the practical through the symbolic to the mystical, and back again! You can follow the development of his new farm, Parsnippity Farm, on Facebook. Gone are the days when a tulip bulb costs years' wages. [53], The Semper Augustus was the most expensive tulip during tulip mania. Triumph, Fringed, Parrot, Lily-flowered, and numerous other types make a dazzling diversity of forms and hues. The interest for the flowers was huge and bulbs were sold for unbelievable high prices. In the seventeenth century Netherlands, during the time of the Tulip mania, an infection of tulip bulbs by the tulip breaking virus created variegated patterns in the tulip flowers that were much admired and valued.

Larger species tend to have multiple leaves. Published by the editors of MOTHER EARTH NEWS, Mother Earth Gardener provides decades of organic gardening experience from the most trusted voices in the field. The multicoloured patterns of modern varieties result from breeding; they normally have solid, un-feathered borders between the colours. Native to Central Asia and the Middle East, tulips were considered a luxury, and were first introduced into Europe in the 16th century from Turkey. • Access to exclusive online content -- seasonal recipes, organic pest control & more.