If you are looking for the easiest Tulips to grow, then the species tulips are the ones. You do not have to dig them, the flowers are elegant and the flower reliably year after year.
We were first introduced to Species Tulips (Tulipa) by Shirley Tonkin and we now have more of these in the garden than the modern cultivars.
Generally they are smaller growing than the hybrids, however they are no less colorful and in our opinion elegant and defiantly easier to grow, as well as hardier than their florist shop relatives.
In the Australian climate they thrive, a hot summer is no problem as they are dormant anyway, and as long as the soil is well drained you are pretty much on the way to successful growth.
Popular Species Tulip Varieties
Here are some of the stars we grow (and the ones you’ll spot in good bulb catalogues):
- Tulipa aucheriana – Charming star-shaped mauve-pink flowers about 7–8 cm across on low stems. Super elegant and one of the easiest.
- Tulipa hageri (or Hageri Group) – Warm coppery-red or brick-red blooms, often multi-flowered. Reminds us of old Mediterranean tiles.
- Tulipa kaufmanniana – The famous waterlily tulips. Early bloomers that open flat in the sun like waterlilies, with beautiful mottled foliage.
- Tulipa kolpakowskiana – Graceful buttercup-yellow flowers with tapered petals on short stems. A real charmer.
- Tulipa marjolettii – Creamy-yellow petals edged in soft rose-pink. Has a lovely relaxed, old-world feel.
- Tulipa mauritiana – Late-flowering beauty from the French Alps with primrose-yellow blooms often flamed or marked with red.
- Tulipa saxatilis – Lilac-pink flowers (the ‘Lilac Wonder’ selection is popular) that love a hot, well-drained spot.
- Tulipa sylvestris – Fragrant bright yellow flowers with a green stripe on the outside – one of the most natural-looking and scented.
- Tulipa turkestanica – Delicate white star-shaped flowers (up to a dozen per stem) with a fresh fragrance.
- Tulipa whittallii (Whittallii Group of T. orphanidea) – Rich orange-red tones with a bronze base – very striking.
Why Species Tulips Beat Modern Hybrids
These are the original wild tulips from Central Asia, Turkey, and parts of Europe – the very plants that were hybridised over centuries to create today’s big showy cultivars.
Because they’re closer to nature, they’re tougher, more perennial, and happier to naturalise and spread gently in the garden without any special treatment.
Hybrids often look spectacular for one season then fizzle out unless you dig them up and baby them. Species tulips? Just plant them and let them do their thing.
How to Grow and Care for Species Tulips
In the garden
Plant in a sunny spot with well-drained, humus-rich soil. They love a touch of lime and some well-rotted compost worked in at planting time.
In pots or containers
- Use a good-quality, free-draining potting mix and make sure the pot has plenty of drainage holes. Same sunny position rules apply.
- Choose pots at least 30 cm deep.
- Plant bulbs pointy-end up, 10–12 cm deep in a free-draining mix.
- Water well after planting, then keep just moist over winter.
- Once shoots appear, move to the sunniest spot you have.
- In warmer states (QLD/NSW north coast), give bulbs 4–6 weeks in the fridge before planting to mimic cold winters.
- They perform brilliantly on balconies and courtyards
Planting tips
- Depth: Around 15 cm (or twice the height of the bulb in warmer areas).
- Time: Autumn (late April to May in most of Australia) once the soil has cooled.
- Spacing: 10–15 cm apart for a natural drift look.
Feeding
A liquid seaweed fertiliser every couple of weeks during active growth works brilliantly. Keep it light – they’re not heavy feeders.
After flowering
Let the foliage die back naturally (this feeds the bulb for next year). Once it’s yellow and crispy, you can snip it off. No need to dig them up.
Aftercare & Propagation
Once the foliage yellows, stop watering completely over summer. They love the ‘bake’ in dry soil.
Offsets (small bulbs) can be gently separated when you divide and replanted – they’ll reach flowering size in 1–2 years.
Some species also spread by stolons (underground runners) for lovely natural drifts.
Dividing Species Tulips
Every three to four years, lift and divide overcrowded clumps in autumn to keep them flowering strongly and prevent congestion.
They really are set-and-forget plants once established – just the kind of low-maintenance spring colour every gardener dreams of.
Design Ideas for Species Tulips Gardens
- Use species tulps in rock gardens, gravel beds, or the front of sunny borders where drainage is sharp.
- They look magical naturalised in drifts under deciduous trees or mixed with early daffodils, muscari, and low native grasses.
- In pots, cluster different varieties on a sunny patio for a long season of colour from early to late spring.
- Because they’re smaller and more delicate, they suit cottage-style or Mediterranean-inspired gardens perfectly
Where To Buy Species Tulips
'Sylvan Vale' 375 Olinda Creek Rd, Kalorama, VIC.3766
Including a large range of Rare and unusual bulbs, corms and perennials
www.tonkinsbulbs.com.au
365 Lighthouse Rd Wynyard. TAS 7325
PH 03 6442 2012
email to: sales@vdqbulbs.com.au
www.vdqbulbs.com.au
2 Jacksons Hill Rd, Menzies Creek VIC 3159
Hundreds of different varieties of daffodils as well as other beautiful spring & autumn flowering bulbs for home gardeners. Free colour catalogues available. Tulips, Daffodils,Alliums, Freesias, Iris and many other bulbs.
www.daffodilbulbs.com.au
