Recently I did something that I had not done in a long time; I put a stamp on an envelope. Since I’m an old fashioned guy, I still like to send out cards for Christmas and Hanukkah and, of course, put stamps on them. But, I pay bills online and communicate primarily via text or email, so stamps are not required. When I had to mail a check to someone, however, I had to resort to the old technology. Hence, a stamp on an envelope.
Digging around in the drawer where our stamps are stored, I was surprised to find, not some old leftover holiday stamps, but some seasonally appropriate stamps! Yes, the floral equivalent of Robins — Tulips!
Right away those tulips reminded me of the time that we spent in Amsterdam a few years back. We arrived at Schiphol Airport and took a shuttle into town and immediately came face-to-face with tulip bulbs. It was the middle of June so there were no fields of tulips in bloom, but you had to watch where you were walking to avoid tripping over piles of bulbs.
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Although we all think of Holland as the home of tulips, they were originally from the Ottoman Empire and were introduced to Europe in the 1550s. In the 17th century, people in Holland became obsessed with exotic tulips. This “Tulipmania” caused prices to soar and some cost as much as a house. Speculators bought them in hopes of selling them at even higher prices. The tulip bubble burst in 1637 and did a number on the economy. Today you can buy 30 bulbs for 6 euros. That’s a bit less than a house.
With no pictures to show of Dutch tulips, I could end this post here, but, hey, I have plenty of photographs of American tulips. And, if you think about it, they probably came from the Ottoman Empire by way of Holland. So, to get you psyched for spring, here are some American tulips from good old Wisconsin!
I have to admit that I really like the color orange. It goes quite well with green, don’t you think? So, here are a bunch of tulips that fit the bill.
Now that you’ve seen enough orange tulips, I’ll finish with other colors. If you have a favorite, let me know. And don’t forget, to welcome spring you might want to “Tip Toe Through the Tulips!”
Good bye from the tulip patch!