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Flower Diary - The tulip

09 January 2015

The Flower Diary on Funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk will focus on tulips from week  1 to week  5. The diary will tell consumers all about this classic Dutch beauty with an Eastern past. Will you also be sharing this story of the tulip with your customers during these weeks?

What is the Flower Diary?

The Flower Diary 2015 features 15 flowers sorted by the season in which they are available. The diary tells a story of the flower and offers inspiration and visually beautiful images. Consumers can find the diary on Funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk and can share the content via social media.

The tulip - a Dutch beauty from Iran

One nice story to share with your customers is that tulips originate from Iran, Afghanistan and Kazakhstan. The flower travelled through Turkey to the Netherlands, the country with which the flower is particularly associated with nowadays. The tulip mania of the 16th century (when a tulip bulb was worth as much as a canal-side house in Amsterdam) may have passed, but many people still gain instant pleasure from this  flower. This is undoubtedly linked to the spring fever that tulips evoke.

Colours and shapes of the tulip 

Tulips come in white, red, yellow, pink, purple, orange, green or with  multi-coloured petals. Consumers also have plenty of choice in terms of shape.  There are tulips with a single or double row of petals, eye-catching fringed and parrot tulips with serrated petals and the elegant lily tulip.

Care tips for consumers

These care tips will enable your customers to enjoy tulips for between five and twelve days:

  • Trim the stems diagonally.
  • Choose  a vase tall enough: tulips drink a lot and grow several centimetres.
  • Place the tulips in paper or film in the vase for an hour first. The tulips will then suck up lots of water and will straighten themselves out.
  • Use tap water at room temperature.
  • Place the vase in a cool position out of the sun and away from the fruit bowl, as fruit give off a ripening hormone called Ethylene, that will cause the flowers to age quicker.

How to make a tulip bouquet

You can make an impression with a bouquet of tulips made solely from different colours of tulips. But tulips also do well when combined with other cut flowers. For example, try combining tulips with flowers such as hyacinths, limonium and anemones for a surprising cheerful effect.

Tulip symbolism

Although not many people realise it, the tulip also has symbolic meanings. Red tulips mean passionate love and with black tulips you are saying: "I love you so much that I will sacrifice everything."

The Flower Diary 2015

The Flower Diary is an initiative by Mooiwatbloemendoen.nl in conjunction with FloraHolland and the VBW, who have selected the 15 flowers in the diary. With the diary the Flower Council of Holland is meeting the wish to draw consumers' attention to seasonal flowers, product-specific promotions and flowers which are available all year round.
The Flower Diary 2015 consists of the following flowers:

Week 1 to 5        Tulip
Week 6 to 9        Rose
Week 9 to 12      Ranunculus
Week 11 to 13    Carnation
Week 14 to 18    Gerbera
Week 19 to 22    Peony
Week 23 to 26    Lily
Week 27 to 30    Sunflower
Week 30 to 32    Calla
Week 32 to 35    Hydrangea
Week 36 to 40    Chrysanthemum
Week 40 to 42    Alstroemeria
Week 42 to 45    Lisianthus
Week 45 to 48    Orchid
Week 48 to 52    Amaryllis