Where do tulips really come from?
Wild tulips are native to a band of mountainous terrain stretching from Turkey and the Caucasus through Central Asia — including modern Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan — to western China. Uzbekistan alone is home to more than twenty wild tulip species, some of them found nowhere else in the world. These wild species look quite different from the large garden tulips familiar from Dutch cultivation.
Uzbekistan's wild tulip heritage
In Uzbekistan, wild tulips carpeting the steppe and foothills in spring are a celebrated seasonal event. Species like Tulipa greigii, Tulipa kaufmanniana and Tulipa fosteriana are native to the region and were among the earliest species introduced to European gardens — they remain popular today.
Growing tulips in UK gardens
Garden tulips are among the most rewarding spring bulbs for UK gardeners. Plant bulbs in November in well-drained soil in full sun. For species tulips closer to the wild Uzbek originals — Tulipa greigii, kaufmanniana and fosteriana — plant in a sunny, well-drained spot where they will reliably perennialise and return each year.
Flor nacional de Uzbekistán
La flor nacional de Uzbekistán es el tulipán (Tulipa), conocido localmente como "Lola". Aunque el tulipán se asocia con los Países Bajos, es originario de Asia Central — Uzbekistán alberga más de veinte especies de tulipanes silvestres nativos.