Tulipa 'Old Times'

Tulipa 'Old Times' is a historic Breeder tulip introduced in 1919. It is a bicolour tulip with muted lipstick red to burnt red petals edged in golden yellow on stems to 22 inches high. Breeder tulips are historic tulips that were popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They are characterized by unique colours and colour combinations often in sombre or more unusual shades -- like purples, maroons, browns, and bronzes -- compared to modern tulips. They can be classified as Single Late tulips and bloom very late in the season. For the discerning gardener looking for something unique for spring, you've found it! Large hybrid tulips can be maintained in the garden if given a sunny location with rich soil and slow release fertilizer when in growth.

This uniquely colored, brown-inflected tulip has "a real 'old-timey' look to its garnet and primrose flowers," as J. Horace McFarland wrote in 1938. Its shape is wonderfully old-fashioned, too, with lancet-pointed petals that curl back gracefully as they open in the sun. One of the so-called Cottage tulips, it was re-discovered by the Rev. Joseph Jacobs "in an old garden in Hanmer in 1905." Very limited supply, Cottage/Single Late, 14-16", zones 4a-7b(8aWC)