Tulips - Tulip Decorating Ideas
Dozens of flower species make for popular decorating elements. Roses often make it from the garden into the vase. Daisies cheer many a home. Peonies, chrysanthemums and daffodils are perennial favorites. But in this pantheon of flowers a special place must be reserved for tulips.
Thinking of tulips we often have the image of a solid red or pink or even yellow cup about the size and shape of a liquor glass. But cultivars number in the thousands and they cover so many colors and styles it would take a volume merely to list them.
There are solid colors, to be sure. But among the most valuable tulips during the Dutch tulipmania of the 1630s were the famed 'broken tulips'. These flowers had their solid colors broken up by stripes or stipling and - like diamonds with infiltrations of color that might to some experts be considered a flaw - were very highly prized by expert and commoner alike.
Flower sizes vary from the tiny bowl we're used to all the way to petals that open wide and stretch several inches across. Those petals may be flat, oval or curled. In short, just about anything.
So when it comes to decorating with tulips, the choices are practically unlimited.
Easter is an especially apropos time of the year to put vases of tulips around. Picture a crystal clear vase about ten inches high. Its pure transparency allows the mottled, purplish foliage of some Greigii Tulips to complement the beautiful red of a Red Riding Hood.
As an alternative, selecting a colorful bowl in a complementary color can work wonders. Imagine a Species Tulip with its unusually small blossoms. Clip them close and lay a bunch into a bowl on the table for a beautiful dinner decoration. Persian Pearl are a superior choice for this purpose.
When decorating with flowers don't think only of appearance, either. One of the best aspects of using flowers to dress up the home or office is that they also provide intoxicating scents. Many tulips will cooperate nicely with that goal.
General de Wet tulips may have a funny name, but they offer a lovely fragrance. Forest Tulips have that name for a reason. Apricot Beauty or Bellona are equally good choices. At Christmas time, go for the Christmas Marvel. That name, too, is well chosen.
No matter which tulip variety you choose, following a few simple guidelines will help you get the most out of them when decorating.
Like any flower used for the home, it's best to clip or buy them when the buds are still closed. They'll last longer and you get the added advantage of watching them open.
Cutting the stems at the base the proper way also helps preserve their 'shelf life' quite a bit. Whenever possible, hold the stem under water at least an inch and a half down. Then cut an inch off the stem with a sharp pair of scissors or pruning shears as straight across as you can manage. That prevents air bubbles from blocking water trying to flow up the stem.
One way to ease that operation in some cases is to fill the vase to the top with water, then dip the stems in. You'll spill a little bit, so do this in the sink or on the counter where you can clean up easily. Then, with the stems still under water but near the rim of the vase, your hands will be better able to get to the stem base for a good, clean cut under the surface.
