Hello Mary Sue, The photo of the tulip you sent looks like a typical case of a virused tulip. The feather like colour breaks and the stunted growth make me think this. This may also be the reason why it does not grow well with you and might also explain why the other bulbs you received were in bad shape. Personally I would always discard this because the tulips may live with the virus for a long time but aphids may spread it to other plants which might succumb. The famous Dutch Tulip Fever (Tulipomania)of the 17th century which made people pay fantasy sums of money for a single bulb was fueled by these virused tulips of which some varieties have survived until the present day. Bye for now Uli _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net>