Tulip

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Tulip, common name for any member of a genus of spring-flowering, bulbous herbs, of the lily family. About 80 species of tulip exist; these plants are native to Asia and the Mediterranean region, and thousands of varieties are widely cultivated as garden flowers. Tulips are erect plants with long, broad, parallel-veined leaves and cup-shaped, solitary flowers borne at the tip of the stem. The flowers are either single or double and occur in a wide range of solid colors. Some, called broken tulips, are varicolored as a result of a viral disease carried and transferred to the plants by aphids.

The garden tulip was introduced into western Europe from Constantinople (present-day İstanbul) in the 16th century and soon achieved great popularity. Interest in tulip growing mounted, especially in Holland, where it developed by 1634 into a craze called tulipomania. Wild speculation in tulip stock ensued, and enormous prices were paid for single bulbs. After many people had gone bankrupt, the crisis was ended by government regulation of the tulip trade. Tulip growing eventually became established as an important Dutch industry, and tulip bulbs are still a major export of the Netherlands. In the United States tulips are grown commercially in Michigan and Washington.

Because of extensive hybridization, the origin of the garden tulip is extremely difficult to trace. The best-known varieties include the Darwin tulip, a late-flowering plant with tall, strong stems and deep-colored blossoms; the parrot tulip, another late-flowering type, which has petals wrinkled at the edges; and the early-flowering Duc van Tol tulips, which rarely exceed 15 cm (6 in) in height.

Scientific classification: Tulips make up the genus Tulipa of the family Liliaceae.

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