Subject: Black tulips & flower meanings

From: [email-masked] (PETER C. FREY)
Date: 21 Mar 1995 05:06:54 GMT

Greetings to all on the list!  I've been reading for a while and
just now have a couple questions.  I would be pleased with any
input you could provide.

I have read that during the Renaissance period, black tulips were
worth more than their weight in gold.  Are black tulips still as
costly?  Are they available to the everday gardener?

Are there other flowers which carry similar historical intrigue?

Finally, does anyone have, or have access to, a list of meanings
of various flowers?  For example, red rose=passion, white rose=
friendship, and so on...

Thanks ever so much,

Peter
-- 
[email-masked]
[email-masked]
[email-masked]

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From: [email-masked] (Azureus)
Date: 23 Mar 1995 09:12:15 -0500

I was just reading "The Complete Book of Bulb Gardening" by Frederic
Doerflinger.  He has a chapter on the history of cultivated bulbs, and he
devotes several pages to tulips.  They were bred and highly prized for
centuries in Turkish gardens before Eurpoeans ever heard of them.  The
 first tulips apparently arrived in Europe around 1546.  By the early
1600's,
most of Europe was in the grip of "Tulipomania" and many varieties of
tulip,
not just black ones, were highly sought after.  Variegated forms were
especially valuable.  Bulbs were sold or traded for ridiculous
amounts--one
man purchased a bulb in trade for large amounts of grain, beer, cheese,
butter, livestock, silver, and a bed!  Now, I'd trade maybe a *single
bottle*
of good beer for a tulip bulb (or maybe my cat, on a bad day), but really!
The book goes on to say that people from all walks of life began
speculating
on tulips, until the government of Holland forbade around 1636.  This
caused
a big crash, eerily similar to the stock market crash that happened here
in
the U.S. in 1929.  Anyway, I found the info made me look with new interest
(and suspicion) at my plants.

April

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From: [email-masked] (Azureus)
Date: 23 Mar 1995 09:12:15 -0500

April

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From: AJD <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 28 Mar 1995 22:20:19 GMT

Interesting information!  Here's a cultivation question:  

I bought some black tulip bulbs in Holland when I was on vacation in the fall 
and brought them home to Southern California where I duly refrigerated them for 
the time specified for this climate.  After planting, I anxiously awaited the 
bloom.  When it did, I was disappointed -- it wasn't even close to black. I 
expected at least a dark purple, but what I got was an unattractive mauve.  What 
happened?  Is the climate here all wrong?  Did I get some other variety by 
accident?  Not chilled long enough?  Wrong nutrients? By the way, all the other 
tulips I planted bloomed true to the colors specified on the packages.

>In article <[email-masked]> Azureus writes: 
>April>

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From: AJD <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 28 Mar 1995 22:20:19 GMT

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From: [email-masked] (William )
Date: 06 Apr 1995 08:58:40 GMT

When I was in holland a few years ago, we visited one of the flower
warehouses, and bought soem black tulip bulbs at a rather ordinary price.
Unfortunately, they rotted away before we got around to planting them (this
did take a couple years...)

Despite what they might like you to believe, I assume anything I could
buy ata gift shop in holland is also available from mail order specialty
bulb dealers in the US.

BillW

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From: [email-masked] (William )
Date: 06 Apr 1995 08:58:40 GMT

BillW

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From: [email-masked] (William )
Date: 06 Apr 1995 08:58:40 GMT

BillW

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From: [email-masked] (David K. Lytle)
Date: Sun, 9 Apr 1995 12:59:49 GMT

> buy ata gift shop in holland is also available from mail order specialty
For flower meanings try this book... Forget -Me-Not a floral treasury,
Sentiments and Plant Lore from the Language of Flowers, author Pamela Todd,
published by Little, Brown and Co (UK and Canada), Bulfinch Press (US)

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From: Melanie Eckhart <[email-masked]>
Date: 11 Apr 1995 22:02:38 GMT

>>     costly?  Are they available to the everday gardener?

I have seen them this year in several of the flower catalogs I received
in the mail.  They're about the same price as the other bulbs.  I have
the catalogs at home, but will get the addresses if you would like.  Just
let me know.

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From: [email-masked] (Nancy Hammond)
Date: 10 Apr 1995 16:33:54 -0400

David K. Lytle ([email-masked]) wrote:
: In a previous posting, William ([email-masked]) writes:
: >     I have read that during the Renaissance period, black tulips were
: >     worth more than their weight in gold.  Are black tulips still as
: >     costly?  Are they available to the everday gardener?

Breck's new summer sale catalog of fall bulbs has black tulips.  I 
think they're WEIRD, myself, but they are available.

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From: krh/micro <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 14 Apr 1995 11:03:19 EDT

I grew several of these last year with great sucess!  They looked
unique...  the bad news---- Ground Hogs love 'em!  *frown*-krh ( they
were reasonably priced and I purchased them at the local "True Value "
hardware store...)

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From: krh/micro <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 14 Apr 1995 11:03:19 EDT

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From: [email-masked] (Adam Johnson)
Date: Mon, 17 Apr 1995 03:49:27 GMT

William ([email-masked]) wrote:
:     I have read that during the Renaissance period, black tulips were
:     worth more than their weight in gold.  Are black tulips still as
:     costly?  Are they available to the everday gardener?

: BillW

I've tried a variety called Queen of Night, which I ordered through a catalog
from a company called Van Bourgondien. It was not expensive compared to 
the other varieties of tulips. It opened with a color near black, but 
quickly faded to a dull purple.
                                         John DeMarce

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From: [email-masked] (Adam Johnson)
Date: Mon, 17 Apr 1995 03:49:27 GMT

: BillW