Not all bulbs will perform as expected when planted in your particular area, zonification is a very tricky way to believe that if you are for ex in zone 6 all zone 6 areas are equal, there are specific zones inside the zones, there are different types of soil, humidity levels, planting and growing practices. There are many variables to be taken in consideration when purchasing bulbs. Some tulip bulbs perform great for me while others don´t, after years and years of planting and literally thousands of bulbs and a big bunch of varieties tested I know which varieties perform consistently year after year.

It´s a matter of observation and about asking, drive around the hood and see what varieties are performing well in your neighboor´s gardens, if you see a lushy display ask the owner, you will get dissapointed less if you ask around.

That's a good idea to go ask when you see a nice display. Most people will be flattered and more than happy to share ideas that work for your exact neighborhood.

I don't fall for those species tulips anymore. The price sounds great and the pictures are nice, but I never get a good show. Don't give up on them just yet though, leave them in the ground and if they're happy the show might improve... if not they'll just fade away and you'll be done with it.
If the crocus don't look good this year, have patience. They'll probably be ok again next year and then look much better the year after that as they settle in and multiply into clumps. I planted a bunch last fall... I ignored the directions and put about 50 bulbs in about a foot wide hole. (obviously I don't have the patience to wait for a big show)

Keep in mind too, that typically species have smaller flowers. The huge showy flowers of most of our garden plants are the result of lots of hybridization. In the future, you'd probably be best off just getting a few bulbs when trying something new. See how they perform in your conditions & go from there.

Like kato, I rarely follow the "distance apart" guidelines.

Yep Kato I don't think I'll be falling for them anymore neither. The only real reason I purchased them was because I saw that one flower that was so pretty in one of our common areas and was told that it was a species, plus the photos on the bulb sites look beautiful. I did love my crocus I just didn't plant them close enough and they never seem to last long enough. I think next year I'll try some real tulips and plant even more crocus. I get my spring wonderland sooner or later.

One second, what a PARTICULAR species you are talking about?
There are MANY different species AND their cultivars.
Eventhough I can't make Darwins to bloom for me reliably for the second year, both Kaufmaniana and Greigii performs excellent and I'm about to see them blooming for the 4th year on a row.
Pictures from 2006 (end of April)
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What nice pictures! I am so much in the mood for spring (as I sit here by the window anticipating the snow that's supposed to come tonight)

I've had much better luck with kauf. and greigii cultivars than with the botanical species..... but then again I also have good luck with the darwin hybrids. I was thinking more of tulips like T. tarda or T. humilis as being the ones I didn't care for.

I think the bags of mixed darwin tulips that show up in the box stores are a great deal for good garden impact... try those if you like the red-yellow-orange colors (and sometimes pink). If you want other colors like purple and such, then you start getting into colors that don't repeat well.

I picked up two boxes at Sam's last fall for lily flowered and for a pastel mix. They were marked down to $7/60 bulbs so if they don't make a showing the second year I'm ok with that.

Yes very nice pictures and I love your yard. Your tulips make mine look sick. Those are the same color as the one I saw up the road, I love that color, but yours are much bigger. The species that I purchased were Clusiana Var Chrysantha, Hageri Splendens, Little Princess & humilis Persian Pearl. The Hageri Splenders and Little Princess were the ones that didn't have any stem at all and the other 2 had stems but very small flowers. I try to get some photos posted you'll get a kick out of the ones without stems. I'd love to know where you purchased your bulbs at ego45. Was it from a local nursery or did you find them online? If I can get my hands on some I'd love to try them next year.

Thank you,
Strouper2

Strouper2,

I've been growing the little Tulipa clusiana var Chrysantha's for a number of years and I really like them. You just have to use them in a small scale situation. I use them in my rock garden near small Narcissus and sedums.

- Steve

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I also have good luck with the Kaufmaniana and Greigii varieties. In the fourth year after planting they look pretty much the same. Maybe a few more flowers, and thus smaller ones. In a different garden I planted "regular" tulips: darwins, single early, doubles, and some others. They came up alright until this year. None of those have bloomed yet but I can see already, many flowers are going to be really small. But I was expecting this, based on past experience. I will proably let them die out there and fill that bed with other perennials.

BTW, for longevity nothing beats daffodils. They just increase every year.

I have very active squirrels that dig up my hybrid tulips so I rarely have had any make it to spring blooms. So I planted bulbs and got nothing at all. Species tulips have been better as they don't seem to be as palatable, though I did lose part of my T. vvedensky and wilsoniana this year. In subsequent years my T. praestans unicum, a large tulip for a species as is vvedensky, has increased in numbers of blooms. Little Princess has also increased in number of blooms and is very cheery in spring, as is linifolia and batalinii Apricot Jewel. Give them a chance and they may grow on you.

It takes a lot of bulbs eve to do a small yard. my front yard are 2 patches about 20'x20'. we planted about 2000 crocuses in it about 10 years ago we add about 200 every year-- to where we think the bare spots are. to space them to start with, i just mixed all the bulbs together and then
'broadcast' them by hand. where they laned is where they were planted. it looks very natural and stunning in the spring. the squirrels get some, raking gets some, weeding and digging get some. we never planted them in our tree line, but this year they were there too.
every year just plant another 200 or 300 until you are happy with the results-- snap a picture when they bloom so you know where to add more in the fall. don't for get to use early, mid and late bloomers so you have a long display--mine are usually from early/mid february to late march/early april. snow drops bloom even earlier.
just remember to give yourself about 6 weeks after blooming before you cut grass so foliage can mature. some cities (like mine) don't like your grass to get too long
diggerb

diggerb

As a general rule Species tulips are very tiny (half dollar size, or smaller), and they usually have very short stems. The Kaufmanniana, and the Greigii tulips were both derived from a species tulip, but they are hybrids. Both return better than do many of the other hybrid tulips, but not as well as the smaller species do. The difference between the two, is the smaller ones are either wild, or close to wild.

It sounds to me like they bloomed exactly as they should, I don't think you did anything wrong. I can understand being disapointed if you were expecting the modern day version of a tulip blooming in your garden, but the species can have their own beauty. Just as with crocus however its a beauty that typically has to be enjoyed either close up, or in mass.

As far as distance apart, if you give them a few years they should fill in nicely.

I just got the new Brent and Becky catalog and for some odd reason the species tulips looked very tempting. I don't learn. I guess I'll probably try one or two new ones in the fall. T Linifolia has been on and off my want list for years.... maybe this will be the year it makes the cut.

With minor bulbs the best plan is to add a hundred of this and a hundred of that and a hundred of something new every year for say 5 years or better. After the first thousand bulbs go for another thousand. Eventually you'll have a fantasyland.

You can create a sea of blue in a bed under your trees or shrubs with a half dozen varieties of minor bulbs all in shades of blue blooming one after the other, or plant a river of grape hyacinths for one huge splash. Make single color patches near your porch of various crocus (both early and late ones) or go for the wildly color-mixed look. Form half moons of color around all your smaller shrubs or big grasses provided by tiny dark blue or light blue iris, followed later by deep purple or bright yellow species tulips. Just don't forget the ipheons, anemone blandas, chionodoxa, fritillaria meleagris, the siberian squills and all the miniature daffodils.

I was surprised to see T. vvedenskyi Tangerine Beauty putting on side blooms. This is a stunningly vivid orangy-red tulip with flaming red edges on an orange petal. They are quite large for a species tulip, too.

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I was sent T. batalinii Apricot Jewel by mistake instead of Red Jewel but I really like it. The blooms are small, maybe 1" at most, but very charming.

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I think you should remember one characteristic that appealed to you - that they come back. The hybrids peter out flower-wise after a few years, but you keep getting useless leaves. And for me it is so hard to get them up and out - always some bits remain. I first saw tulipa tarda in a friend's garden and fell in love with them. I was surprised when I saw how small turkestanica blooms were, but then there are so many. I just planted them more en masse and they make quite a show. I have a couple of small patches of chrysantha and they are tiny and elegant. The small tulips blend in better with the other garden plants, especially the leaves which are there after the flowers. Hopefully now that you know what to expect you will come to appreciate the species tulips. I guess you have a big garden and it takes a lot for an impact. Wait till next year - and maybe add more!