Tulipa species S through Z are found on this wiki page
Tulipa Hybrids – Tulipa A-C – Tulipa D-H – Tulipa I-R – Tulipa index
Tulipa sprengeri is a tulip with a more than usually interesting history in cultivation. A single bulb was found in a shipment to the Dutch bulb firm of Van Tubergen from their collector in Turkey, J. J. Manissaadjian before World War I. It has been traced to the region about Amasya, but has never again been found in the wild. Curiously, Tulipa sprengeri does very well in gardens, seeding about with freedom. So much freedom, in fact, that in the early 1950s, E B Anderson, who was then administering the first seed exchanges of the Alpine Garden Society, specifically asked that seed of Tulipa sprengeri not be donated. Nonetheless, when one looks through the standard references on species bulbs, Tulipa sprengeri is often noted as rare and/or expensive. It is very odd that a species that seeds so freely in gardens is evidently extremely rare in the wild.
This species is the last tulip to flower. Its flowers are a unique glowing red, rather small but on fairly long stems so its personality is a good one. If you grow it, beware: it will turn up in unexpected places unless you meticulously deadhead it and prevent seed from scattering. As with some other bulbs, Tulipa sprengeri digs itself down to quite a depth and can be difficult to remove from sites where it is not wanted. The first two photos in the link below is intended to give some idea of how this tulip looks in a garden setting, while the third is a closeup portrait. The first one does not adequately capture the unique glowing color, however. The others capture the true color fairly faithfully, thanks to turning down the saturation on my camera. Photos by Rodger Whitlock.
Tulipa sylvestris is a rather common presence in wheat fields, to the point where it has naturalized. The bulbs of this species grow particularly deep, over 50cm and are able to survive the plowings of the fields without problems. Also it completes its growing cycle, from flowering to ripening seeds, before the wheat is harvested. As a result of the feeding, the plants often develope multiheads stalks, just similar to the modern Multiflora tulips. Curious to see, the plants were only in cultivated fields, while they weren't in adjacent intact lands. Photos in habitat in Apulia by Angelo Porcelli
Tulipa tarda, a species from central Asia, is a nice patch of bulbs in bloom. I've had this patch for many years. This one gets my vote for best, most long-lived tulip species for rock gardens. Photos by Mark McDonough show a close-up view of the yoke yellow flowers with white tips and in the second photo some larger larger leaves of T. bakeri 'Lilac Wonder' which are "succession interplanted" among the Tulipa tarda patch.
Tulipa turkestanica as its name suggests is from Turkestan and northwest China. It has one to 12 starry white flowers per bulb. Photo by Arnold Trachtenberg shows one growing in New Jersey and one from Mary Sue Ittner from California of a some blooming in Northern California where a lot of flowers are in bloom at the same time.
Photos by David Victor of this species growing in the wild on the western Tien Shan mountains, Kazakstan, in June 2004. These shots were taken at the top of the Ulkun-Kyindi Pass at around 10,000 feet. The species comes in a pure yellow form or, more frequently, yellow with white tips to its petals. I have included photos of both. The final shot shows Tulipa turkestanica (above) growing alongside Tulipa kaufmanniana (below)in the same location. Normally, however, Tulipa turkestanica seems to prefer a cooler western exposure, compared to Tulipa kaufmanniana, which seems to prefer southern aspects.
Tulipa urumiensis a dwarf species from Iran and Turkey with narrow leaves and bright golden yellow flowers, grown in New Jersey, photo by Arnold Trachtenberg.
Tulipa vvedenskyi has prostrate wavy edged leaves and bright orange red flowers and is from Soviet Central Asia. The first two photos by Bob Rutemoeller. The next two photos by Mark McDonough. The foliage, stem height, and flower color can vary quite a bit in this species. The form shown here is very short compared to other forms I have seen grown by gardeners in my area. One of the hallmarks of this species is the wonderful undulate foliage.
There is a hybrid of this species pictured on our Tulipa Hybrids page
Tulipa Hybrids – Tulipa A-C – Tulipa D-H – Tulipa I-R – Tulipa index
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