In praise of Angelique

I can't say enough about the division 11, double late, tulip "Angelique". It is a large double with a pink blush and very long lasting blooms. Ours have bloomed for more than a month and rebloomed reliably when left in the ground and not lifted. Some say that the trouble with Angelique is that the flower is too heavy for the stem and it has a tendency to fall over especially after a rain. We have not had this problem, the flower bending after a rain but righting itself when the rain evaporates. I can see why this was an award winning tulip. The only problem we've seen is that the color is not uniform. Some flowers are almost white with only a faint tinge of pink and others have a dark pink blush. Actually I don't see it as a problem because I like a little variation but if you want a bed of uniform color you may be disappointed.

I would like to try some Division 2, double early tulips which are supposed to be as long lasting as Angelique but have a shorter stem and less likely to fall over. Combined with Angelique we could have several months of tulips. Maybe "Snowstorm" a white with yellow centers would be a good compliment.

Our experiment with Division 12-15 tulips were a disappointment. The only one that performed well was the T. Tarda. T. turkestanica and T. saxatallis grew too leggy in a slightly shaded area and sprawled on the ground, barely keeping the flower head up. T. kaufmanniana the waterlily tulip and T. lilac wonder were bigger than I thought they would be on short stems and seemed misshapened. All were early bloomers and if you want color early in the season they would be fine but they are also short lived so they come and go as quickly as some ephemerals.