LADY BUG... FOUR HUNDRED YEARS AGO, THE FIRST TULIPS BLOOMED IN HOLLAND

April has arrived almost too soon for those of us who have not finished the March chores. Daffodils have never bloomed more lovely, pansies' little (and big) happy faces turn toward the sunshine, spring beauty is blooming in Arena Park, Bradford pears have never been so full, forsythia and flowering fruit trees are all outdoing themselves, to greet this favorite time of the year.

Now come the tulips. Of all the spring flowering bulbs, tulips are the favorite of consumers. Americans alone plant 280 million tulip bulbs each year. There are more than 3,500 varieties of hybrid and specie tulips.

This spring, tulips have a special significance. It was exactly 400 years ago that the first tulips bloomed in Holland. Those first blooms launched the Dutch love affair with tulips. Today, more than 90 percent of all tulip bulbs sold worldwide are grown in this tiny European country.

In the spring of 1594 the first tulips bloomed in the Netherlands. They originally hailed from the Middle East in the area that stretches from the Mediterranean Sea to just beyond the borders of modern day China.

Tulips were first cultivated in Turkey as long ago as the 11th century. To the sultans of this powerful empire, the special beauty of the tulip was a symbol of wealth and prestige.

In Holland in the early 1600s groups of hard-nosed traders filled the smokey air of taverns with sky-high bids for tulip bulbs. At one point a single Semper Augustus bulb brought 3,000 Dutch guilders, about $1,500 U.S. dollars. It is said that the prices rose to an incredible $44,000 for a mere handful of bulbs.

After the tulip market crashed in 1600, bannkrupting many, the era became as "Tulipmania". (On today's market tulip bulbs are no more expensive than other spring flowering bulbs.)

Famous Dutch painters were so taken with the tulip that they worked them into masterful still-life paintings. Tulips and art became so intertwined that a whole class of tulips has been called "Rembrandt tulips."

There are many, many kinds of tulips available. Often overlooked are the dainty, more delicate species tulips which flower ahead of the hybrids.

The many hybrids include the early flowering Single Earlies and Double Earlies, the mediation Triumphs, Darwin Hybrids, the late flowering Darwins, Cottage, Lily-flowered, Fringed, Viridiflora, Rembrandt, Parrot and Peony-flowered Doubles.

All of the above are available in a wide range of colors and have distinctive characteristics. When planted among other plant material, they should be planted in groupings of at least a dozen bulbs to make a good showing.

To energize bulbs and boost repeat performance, apply a fast-release, high nitrogen fertilizer to beds early in springtime, just as bulb shoots come up.

Properly kept, cut tulips will provide a week or more of color in the home.

Prepping tulips prior to arranging them will dramatically improve their appearance and performance. A constant supply of fresh, cool water is the secret.

First, trim the white end off the tupil with a clean, sharp knife to open up water intake channels which close down when the stem is dry.

Wrap the bunch snuggly in a newspaper to hold in an upright position, leaving the stem exposed.

Position the wrapped bunch upright in a container of cool water just deep enough to cover the exposed stem bases but not touching the paper.

Place the container in a cool location for an hour or so. If after a few days the flowers begin to droop, simply repeat the process.

When arranging use only clean cool water to retard bacteria growth. Fill the base one-third full and refill daily.

When arranging remember that cut tulips continue to grow in water, sometimes adding nearly an inch in the vase. Darwin tulips grow the most.

For longer plant life, place bouquets out of direct sunlight or heat. Add cut plant food to the water and keep the water fresh.

Look for nifty new tulips to plant this fall. It usually takes 15 to 20 years to bring a new tulip onto the market, but there are always lots of old, as well as new introductions.

Remember it matters not where one buys tulip bulbs because they all come from the same place - Holland.