The tulip is a beautiful flower, and also a cheerful reminder of Spring. Read this article to learn the history, nature and cultivation of the tulip. The tulip is also known by the Latin name tulipa. It requires partial to full sun to flourish, and for this reason often survives an average of three days indoors. It is planted at a depth of 8 to 9 inches under the soil, and the tulip is often planted in the fall for spring blooms. The tulip is actually a native of central Asia! The tulip is a native of the Tien-Shan and Pamir-alai Mountain Ranges near Islamabad. Tulips spread to China and Mongolia from this point, and from there entered the far reaches of Europe. The Turkish Empire is greatly renowned for having the tulips that now decorate the Netherlands, and the Turks were known as cultivators of this flower through Persia and Asia from as early as 1,000 A.D.Tulips are greatly associated with the Dutch, and this is because of a famous Dutch gardener named Carolus Clusius who was born in 1593. Clusius was the head gardener at the University of Lieden in Holland, where his work in botany, herbs and medicine was well-known. He was the first to plant tulips in what has today become a land renowned for its fields of tulips and daffodils. His work in this area was remarkable, for the tulip is considered a wild flower due to its origins in mountainous terrain and varieties. Certain kinds of tulips grow under rocks and only in the highest climates. When planting tulips, you should always place the pointed end up in the ground. It is also good to plant bulbs deeper than 10 inches under in warmer climates, because tulips that warm in the ground too quickly often take years to return after their first blooming period. Also, the deeper you plant a tulip, the tougher it will be. Tulips planted deeper have thicker stems and fall over less often .When planting tulips, it is nice to place them close to one another to avoid having them standing by themselves in the Spring. This is one flower that always looks better in groups. You can place bulbs as close as six inches away from each other in the ground, and for long rows of tulips, sometimes it is nice to dig a trench to plant them in. Tulips require ground that does not retain much water, because with prolonged exposure to water in the ground they tend to rot. You can test the ground by pouring water in a hole and checking to make sure it drains away in a reasonable amount of time.
