Personality traits for Flower Bulbs
Dear readers,
Just as I was about to give up on thinking of a good subject for this week’s newsletter, Frans appeared in our break room. He told me he had no idea, I could write anything, as long as it wasn’t about him—which was a great idea, actually. If there is someone who would be easy to talk about, it would be Frans.
Frans is a colourful person, and he always has a new story ready. I’d sooner talk too much about him than not have enough to say, he is one of those people who has all kinds of unique, fun character traits that make him a person everyone likes to have around. As I was thinking about that, I also realised I often attribute all of those human traits to flowers, too. Maybe Frans would like it better if that were the subject instead, as himself was the one thing he did not want the newsletter to be about :)
Say Cheese is a cheeky Daffodil, but cheeky in the good sense only. The type of cheeky that is still kind of touching, this flower is the kind of little rascal that draws the right kind of attention.
This Tulip could probably be described as very neat. When you see one flower, that may sound kind of funny, but when you see lots of these Tulips together, you’ll know exactly what I mean. If you plant a set of 20, you see their tall, slim stems stand up nice and straight, with almost symmetrical flowers when she is in bloom. She comes across as organised, which is a quite a unique thing for a flower to be.
Hyacinthoides Excelsior is reliable to the extreme. If you manage to kill this one off, you are free to tell me exactly how you managed to do that, and I’ll probably still have trouble believing you. Plant a few of these bulbs at any spot in your garden and forget about them, they’ll come back to surprise you for years.
This one I would call sweet. Cute, maybe tender, too? I think that would describe Angel Cheeks, the person who gave her the name probably agreed, too.
Carlton has the characteristics of a go-getter. I think Carlton makes the newsletter every single year when I write about good, sturdy Daffodils, and I expect to have to include them for the rest of my life. Next spring, in 2027, this Daffodil celebrates their 100th birthday, believe it or not. In 1927 England, P.D. Williams baptised this flower and gave them the name Carlton, and ever since, it has been a staple in Daffodil assortments everywhere. Today, Carlton is grown in large quantities in both England and The Netherlands, which is unbelievable. If you see large, yellow Daffodils bloom somewhere in public, chances are it’s Carlton. Go get them for your own garden and I promise you’ll be able to enjoy them for years to come.
I think this one could best be described as tough. Yes, this tiny little flower is a sturdy presence. They often bloom from January on, when the weather is still icy cold and the wind keeps away many other flowers. Snow Fox can take hail, snow, and frost without even blinking. Their siblings, Polar Bear and Beluga, come up a little bit later, but have the same qualities.
This one is maybe a little bit over-enthusiastic; with the number of flowers they happily produce on every single stem. All in a bright, fresh yellow, too. Definitely enthusiastic.
This is a Tulip we could call funny. This is a Tulip without any real intention of looking like a Tulip, and I respect that. Golden Leo just does whatever, and the funny part is that most people seem to love that about them. At flower auctions, Golden Leo has been one of the highest paid Tulips for years, and I am sure they will entertain every visitor that sees them in your garden, too.
One of our most popular mixtures. I would call this one friendly, maybe even content. None of the Tulips in this mix do more than the others, they are all perfectly aligned and share the spotlight amazingly well. It looks harmonious, and when you plant them in your garden, the result is breath-taking because of it.
A modest Daffodil who keeps their head down and doesn’t try anything too outlandish. I love seeing how Snipe is one of our most popular small Daffodils, people really see them for what they are worth and that makes me happy.
You can tell there are many human traits to be discovered in flowers. When I told my daughter Roos about this newsletter, she told me not to forget ‘rotten’ as a description. She has been in charge of all of our Fluwel Special Narcissus varieties, and every once in a while, she takes out a rotten one. Maybe not the best characteristic for people, but oh well, she is not wrong. And luckily when it comes to flower bulbs, the rotten ones go straight into the compost, so you never have to deal with them at home :)
But I have to go back to the warehouse, my Dream Team has some questions.
Kind regards,
Carlos van der Veek
