April rains bring in May flowers is a famous Canadian saying. In May, Tulips announce the arrival of Spring at our garden.

Tulips are wildflowers native to central Asia in the Tien Shan Mountains near the Russian-Chinese border but didn’t really become popular until reaching the Netherlands.

They spread west and were cultivated in the Ottoman Empire (modern-day Turkey) by 1000 AD, when the sultans introduced huge beds of tulips to parks and palace gardens.

Tulips are known for their bold colors and beautiful shape, and most varieties are indeed almost perfectly symmetrical.

The word ‘tulip’ comes from ‘tülbend,’ a Turkish pronunciation of the Persian word ‘dulband,’ which means turban.

Tulips are known for their bold colors and beautiful shape, and most varieties are indeed almost perfectly symmetrical.

The blooms have three petals and three sepals, but since the sepals are almost the same size and shape as the petals, tulips appear to have six petals to a bulb.

Striped tulips were originally created from a virus. In 1931, scientists discovered that the coloring was caused by a virus spread by aphids (sap-sucking insects). The virus is still used to alter the DNA, but it’s done without aphids.

Tulips symbolise love but there is a different meaning based on the color tulip. For love and romance, red tulips are the way to go.

If you want to convey an apology, white tulips are the flowers that you seek.

Orange Tulips represent sense of compassion, understanding, and sympathy.

Pink tulips symbolise happiness and confidence.

Purple tulips are associated with royalty.

Yellow tulips are great for cheer and happiness.

Although there are no true black flowers that occur in nature, because of their deep purple petals that almost look black. ‘Queen of the Night’ tulips are one of the most popular varieties because of their deep purple petals that almost look black.

True Blue is one of the few colours with Black that has remained absent from tulip’s impressive colour palette.

The flower is the symbol of the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation. A variety of tulip was named after Dr James Parkinson, the doctor for which the degenerative disease is named.

Currently tulips are the third most popular flower in the world, with roses coming in first and chrysanthemums coming in second.

On Valentine’s Day the tulip is the second most gifted flower (after the rose) – obviously only Red.

Tulip blooms only last a week or two, and we await the tulips to bloom next year.