Ringing in Spring with Tulips: A Celebration of Colour After a Long Winter

What 5,000 tulip bulbs planted in winter coats taught us about patience, beauty, and tradition.

There’s something truly magical about tulips. Maybe it’s their vibrant colour after a long winter, or how they stretch and dance in the vase like they’re still alive and growing. Maybe it’s the history they carry, or the memories they help create. Whatever it is, tulips hold a special place in our hearts, and an even more special place here at Franklin & Co. Flower Farm.

A Bit of Tulip History

Tulips may be most famously associated with the Netherlands, but their story starts much earlier, in Central Asia. Wild tulips were originally found in the Tien Shan mountains and later cultivated in the Ottoman Empire (modern-day Turkey). These elegant flowers became so treasured that they were eventually introduced to Europe in the 16th century.

The Dutch embraced tulips wholeheartedly, and by the 1630s, “Tulip Mania” had taken over. At the height of this craze, some rare tulip bulbs were worth more than gold. Today, the Netherlands is still one of the largest tulip producers in the world.

Where Our Bulbs Come From

The bulbs we planted this past fall came from a trusted supplier in Canada, and included 18 different varieties. Each one was selected for its colour, shape, and vase life. Each variety was also selected for their bloom time to ensure we had a selection of early, mid and late spring tulip arrivals.

Tulips are one of the first signs of spring in our zone 3 garden, and we wanted to make sure the show would be worth the wait.

Why Tulips Are Perfect for Zone 3

Tulips are naturally suited to cold climates, which makes them a perfect flower for our northern garden. In fact, they require a cold period in order to bloom properly. Tulip bulbs need 12 to 16 weeks of chilling at temperatures between 0°C to 9°C (32°F to 48°F). This cold treatment triggers the biochemical process inside the bulb that leads to flowering once the weather warms.

That means our long, cold winters actually work in our favour (for a change, haha)! Zone 3 may come with a shorter growing season, but tulips are one of the few flowers that thrive on that kind of chill. By the time spring rolls around, our tulips are ready to burst into bloom, strong, healthy, and full of life signalling the end to a long winter. 

For flower farmers in warmer climates, where winter temperatures don’t consistently fall into that ideal chilling range, growing tulips requires a different approach. These growers must purchase pre-chilled bulbs that have already been stored in temperature controlled environments for the necessary number of weeks. Without that cold period, tulips simply won’t bloom as they should.

This natural requirement is what makes tulips such a perfect match for gardeners and farmers in northern regions. Our winters give the bulbs exactly what they need, no extra intervention required.

Our Zone 3 Tulip Planting Method

On October 23rd, 2024, my mom and I bundled up in our puffy winter coats and toques and headed out to the raised beds. It was cold, definitely not what most people imagine when they think of tulip planting, but here in Northern BC, you work with what you’ve got.

We planted over 5,000 bulbs that day.

Here's how we did it:

1. Dug trenches 6-8" inches deep in our raised garden beds. We planted some in our greenhouse in hopes of an earlier arrival, and some outside the greenhouse in raised garden beds. 

2. Sprinkled in organic bulb fertilizer and added a generous layer of compost

3. Placed the bulbs closely together in the trench, think of it like tucking eggs into an egg carton

4. Watered the bulbs deeply after they were laid in place

5. Covered the bulbs with compost and the remaining soil

6. Labelled each variety so we’d know who was who come spring

It was a big job and boy were we cold! We stayed focused on the prize arriving in the spring. 

Why Crop Rotation Matters for Tulips

Crop rotation is an important part of growing healthy tulips, especially when you're growing on a larger scale like we are. It's generally recommended to wait between 4 to 7 years before replanting tulips in the same location. This practice helps reduce the buildup of soil borne diseases and pests that can compromise bulb health and lead to weaker, less productive tulips over time.

One particular disease we will be watching for is tulip fire (Botrytis tulipae), a fungal disease that causes brown spots on the leaves, stunted growth, and distorted or rotting flowers. It spreads easily in the soil and can persist for several years, making crop rotation and proper sanitation especially important in preventing its recurrence.

With that in mind, we’ve designed our beds and future planting rotations to keep our tulips as healthy as possible while giving the soil time to rest and regenerate between cycles.

Why We’ll Be Harvesting the Bulbs, Too

In addition to rotating planting locations, another key consideration for flower farmers is how tulips are harvested. While gardeners may leave bulbs in the ground year after year, this isn’t ideal for cut flower production. Reusing tulip bulbs season after season can result in smaller, weaker blooms over time. For commercial growing, pulling the entire stem and bulb ensures the longest, straightest stems with the best vase life and visual impact.

At Franklin & Co. Flower Farm, we’ll be harvesting our tulips by pulling both the stem and bulb from the soil once the flowers are ready. This approach gives us the highest quality stems for bouquets and market sales while allowing us to rework the beds and maintain soil health year to year.

Waiting for Tulips to Pop

Now, we wait. That’s the thing about tulips: they teach patience. All winter long, those bulbs are resting beneath the soil, silently preparing for their moment. And now that spring is almost here, we find ourselves checking the beds daily, okay, maybe even multiple times a day, waiting for the first sign of green to peek through the surface.

It’s a slow unfolding, and a joyful one.

How to Care for Cut Tulips

Tulips are unique in the vase, they continue to grow and move even after they’re cut. Here’s how to help them last and look their best:

• Start with clean, cool water. Tulips prefer it on the chilly side.

• Trim the stems about an inch with a sharp knife or scissors before placing them in the vase.

• Change the water daily to keep them fresh.

• Support them upright. Tulips are known to bend and stretch, some people love this, others prefer a tighter shape. If you want them to stand tall, keep the vase full and use a narrow, taller necked vessel.

• Add ice to the water? Yes, you can. Cold water can help extend vase life. A couple of ice cubes in the vase is a good trick to try.

A Final Thought

Tulips remind us that beauty takes time. That even in the middle of winter, something vibrant and joyful is quietly growing beneath the surface.

We can’t wait to see all 18 varieties bloom this spring and share them with you in our bouquets that will be for sale at the Flower Shack and our vendor locations around Fort St. John. Until then, we’re holding onto the anticipation and trusting the process, just like those bulbs underground.

– Cory