Double tulips versus peony-flowered tulips

Double tulips don’t have just six petals as other tulips do, but many more. These flowers have a round shape and are simply huge! They can easily reach 10 cm across. Double tulips consist of two classes: the double early and double late tulips. Because the profusion of petals born by double late tulips gives them the look of peonies (and also because they smell so delightful) they are also known as peony-flowered tulips.

Double early tulips

Double early tulips start displaying their amazing flowers as early as April and continue on into May. Since the stems bearing double early tulips are short and sturdy, they can more easily withstand the effects of wind and rain. This means they will beautify your garden without any trouble.

Late-flowering double tulips

Late-flowering double tulips (also known as ‘double late tulips’) produce taller stems and bloom later in the season than early-flowering double tulips (‘double early tulips’). The flowering period of these fragrant tulips starts in May. Waiting a little longer for the flowers produced by these tulips is definitely worthwhile, since their flowers are even larger than those of the early-flowering double tulips. They can easily reach a diameter of 10 centimetres, especially when they unfurl their petals on a sunny day.

Tips

• Perhaps you don’t have a garden. But if you have a balcony or patio, you can also enjoy these dazzling flowers.
• When the sun shines on them, the petals of double tulips spread wide open. When the sun is gone, they close up again.
• If you want a gorgeous carpet of flowers in your garden, plant double tulips in clusters of at least ten flower bulbs leaving 7.5 centimetres between them. When the sun shines and their flowers open all the way, not a bit of dark earth can be seen between these lushly blooming tulips.
• Did you know that double tulips are available in a wide array of colours? They range from white to purple and from flecked to streaked varieties. 
• Double tulips should be planted in the autumn from September until the end of December. Make sure, however, to plant them before the soil freezes for the first time.