Tulips by type: flower form changes a bouquet more than colour does
Buyers always ask about colour and almost never about type. Yet the type determines how the bunch looks on day three, how much space it occupies and how recognisable its outline is.
Within a single shade, the difference between a single and a double variety is larger than the difference between two neighbouring colours.
The main groups
Tulips have many botanical classes, and a handful appear regularly in cut flower work.
- Single. The classic goblet shape with six petals and a tidy outline. The most available and the most predictable group.
- Double and peony flowered. Many petals, a large head, and something close to a peony once open.
- Fringed. A needle like edge along the petal that gives texture at close range.
- Parrot. A ruffled, torn looking edge and often variegated colouring, the most expressive form in the range.
- Lily flowered. Pointed reflexed petals and an elongated, elegant goblet.
- Viridiflora. A green stripe up the outside of the petal over any base colour.
Each group behaves slightly differently in a vase, and that is worth weighing before choosing a shade.
How type affects volume and duration
Double and parrot varieties open widest of all. Fifteen of them occupy the volume of twenty five singles, and the vase has to be correspondingly broader.
Single varieties hold a closed shape for longer and suit situations where the bouquet needs to look composed for several days in a row.
Lily flowered types open fully and stay graphic even when wide open, which is unusual in this genus.
Vase life is broadly similar across the groups. What differs is how quickly the bouquet changes shape.
The type of tulip does not decide day one. It decides day three, which is when you find out what you bought.
Matching type to purpose
For structured arrangements and professional occasions, single and lily flowered varieties do the job.
For romantic and celebratory bouquets, double and peony flowered types read as fuller and softer.
For interiors and photography, parrot and fringed varieties are usually the choice, since they carry the most visible texture.
For delivery around Bali, remember that double and parrot heads are heavier and suffer more from compression. They want loose packaging with a collar.
JFLOO splits tulips into separate categories by type. Choose the form before the colour. It shapes the character of the bouquet far more decisively.
