Top performing tulips flowering now.

Tulips are essential in the Spring. We plant loads of their beautiful chestnutty bulbs every autumn. They can be used for naturalising, for cutting, for pots and in the borders.In late April, the red Apeldoorn tulips look gorgeous in the Cedar meadow and their yellow counterparts are showing in the rose meadow and in the Poppy Borders.

We rely on certain tulips every year. They include Tulipa ‘Carneval de Nice’ (below) and, in the bucket,  ‘Uncle Tom’ in foreground, ‘Carneval de Nice’ behind, ‘Queen of the Night’ and fringed tulip ‘Swan Wings.’ The orange tulip ‘Prinses Irene’ looks lovely with terracotta or ironwork in pots but, as you can see here, works just as well amongst these border auriculas.
   
Tulipa ‘Blueberry Ripple’
This is a cracker. It is the first year we have grown it and we will definitely add it to our favourites. I chatted with Perry Rodriguez at Great Dixter  (via twitter). They grow it  and he sent me a beautiful image of Blueberry Ripple amongst mixed tulips on the table in the house. He suggested it would bed out well with variegated honesty. I agree. You could also try it with variegated perennial wallflowers.

I have included this picture particularly because I think it shows the true colour of this tulip. There is one image that seems to be used across the web and it is suspiciously over coloured.