Did you ever consider the magic of a garden, particularly in spring? Tulips and daffodils abound. There is something irresistibly happy about them– gay and enlivening. Every spring thousands of them dance in the wind.

To my eye, the colours of the rainbow fade into insignificance when compared to the colours of spring bulbs. Indeed, creation reigns supreme in our gardens– take a small bulb, plant it at the right time and achieve a miracle.

So I would like to say a few words about one of these miracles– one of our greatest flowers– the tulip.

Over the last seventy years there has been a revolution in the type and classes of this beautiful spring bulb. In 1554 the history of the tulip began when bulbs arrived in Western Europe from Turkey. Tulips reached England in 1579 from Austria, introduced by Austrian Ambassador (Ogier Busbecq) to the court of Suliman the Magnificent.

In 1608 they arrived in France through Flanders and Holland. The famous tulip mania in Holland, a series of gambles, happened between 1632 and 1637. The tulips involved were Semper Augustus (red and white stripes) and Viceroy (white streaked with purple) and other multicoloured tulips of the type we know now as Rembrandts. The bulbs were so valuable they were sold by weight, like diamonds.

The weight was calculated in Azen. An azen was les than a grain so a large bulb would weigh between five hundred and a thousand azens and sell for sums of between 1,500 and 3,500 florins. In every town a club for trading bulbs was set up. People mortgaged their homes and many lives were ruined. The bottom fell out of the tulip market in 1637.

In the eighteenth century the popularity of the tulip increased rapidly in England and France. In Turkey the love of the tulip became obsessive around 1750 and in the early years of the twentieth century there came a huge expansion in the Dutch bulbs (hence tulips from Amsterdam).

Every year great crowds attend the Dutch flower festivals. Tulips have a huge following in the United States. This is due to the influence of Dutch settlers and another great display takes place in Ottawa in early May.

Tulips have fifteen different classifications: single, early all the way to the species tulips. The most popular variety used in Ireland is the Darwin Hybrid Tulip. These are lovely single large flowers on huge stems and are in bloom from mid-April to mid-May. They are 26 inches (65cm) high. If you wish to grow a really special tulip I recommend the Lily flowered variety, lovely sloped flowers with long, pointed petals.

You plant your bulbs from October to November in well-prepared ground and add a small amount or general fertiliser when planting. Good drainage and a sunny location are essential to good growth.

It is very strange that the great Dutch painter Rembrandt was one of the few artists who didn’t paint tulips!