Some tulips command attention with scarlet, gold or purple. ‘Apricot Beauty’ takes another course altogether.
Its flowers open in a delicate mixture of apricot, salmon, peach and soft pink, with the colors changing subtly as the blossoms mature. In some light they appear predominantly salmon-pink; in others, warm apricot and orange emerge from the petals. There is even a gentle fragrance—something we don't often expect from tulips.
Introduced more than seventy years ago, ‘Apricot Beauty’ has survived generations of newer introductions and remains widely grown. That alone says something about it. Tulip varieties disappear from commerce with surprising speed. The good ones endure.
When Was ‘Apricot Beauty’ Introduced?
‘Apricot Beauty’ was introduced in the Netherlands in 1953. Dutch bulb specialist Peter C. Nijssen confirms the 1953 introduction date, as do historic-bulb specialists.
The originator is recorded as the Dutch breeder C. van der Vlugt van Kimmenade. A botanical-garden cultivar inventory lists Tulipa ‘Apricot Beauty’, Division 1, as C. v.d. Vlugt v. Kimmenade, 1953, and Dutch bulb sources likewise credit him with bringing the cultivar to market that year.
That places ‘Apricot Beauty’ firmly among the mid-20th-century Dutch cultivars that have now become classics in their own right.
Why Is It Called ‘Apricot Beauty’?
This is one tulip name that doesn't require much historical speculation.
It is an apricot beauty.
The Royal Horticultural Society describes the flowers more precisely as light, creamy salmon-pink tinged with orange. Other descriptions emphasize the unusual mixture of apricot-orange and salmon-pink.
The color is difficult to capture with a single word because it changes with the flower.
The unopened bud may appear quite pink. As the flower develops, peach and salmon become more apparent. When fully opened in sunlight, warmer apricot and orange tones can emerge, while older flowers may soften toward pale pink.
That variability is part of its charm.
A mass planting doesn't look like a flat block of manufactured color. Individual flowers catch the light differently, creating a gentle mixture of related shades.
What Type of Tulip Is It?
‘Apricot Beauty’ is a Single Early tulip, classified in Division 1.
Single Early tulips are among the first of the familiar large-flowered garden tulips to bloom. They generally grow no more than about 18 inches tall and produce classic, cup-shaped flowers on relatively stout stems. The RHS describes the group as reaching about 45 cm and flowering in early to mid-spring.
‘Apricot Beauty’ typically grows about 14 to 18 inches tall, depending upon conditions. Its moderate stature and sturdy stems help the flowers withstand the uncertain weather of early spring better than some taller, later tulips.
It usually flowers in early spring, often during April in colder climates.
And that early flowering is important.
An Apricot Beginning to Tulip Season
One of the best reasons to plant ‘Apricot Beauty’ is its position in the tulip calendar.
Many of the great Darwin Hybrids, Triumphs and Single Late tulips are still waiting in the wings when Single Early tulips begin flowering.
By combining ‘Apricot Beauty’ with midseason and late cultivars, you can extend the tulip display for weeks rather than enjoying one enormous burst of flowers followed by nothing.
Think of ‘Apricot Beauty’ as one of the opening acts.
It is good enough, however, that the audience may not be particularly anxious for the main performance.
There's Something Else—It's Fragrant
One of the delightful surprises of ‘Apricot Beauty’ is its fragrance.
Tulips are seldom regarded as fragrant flowers. Roses, gardenias and hyacinths get that glory. Tulips are generally appreciated with the eyes rather than the nose.
But ‘Apricot Beauty’ possesses a noticeable sweet fragrance. Fine Gardening's Susanne Mandigo described discovering the cultivar by following an unexpected fruity scent in her garden until she realized that it was coming from the tulip.
The RHS plant shop also recommends placing ‘Apricot Beauty’ where its subtle sweet scent can be enjoyed.
That suggests an obvious landscape use.
Plant some close to where people walk.
How to Use ‘Apricot Beauty’ in the Landscape
Its moderate height makes ‘Apricot Beauty’ particularly useful near the front and middle of flower borders.
The RHS recommends it for flower beds and borders, edging, cottage gardens, courtyards, containers and cutting gardens.
I would particularly favor it beside a walkway or near an entrance.
There you can appreciate both the subtle coloring and fragrance—two qualities likely to be lost if the bulbs are planted fifty feet away at the back of the property.
Its relatively soft color also makes ‘Apricot Beauty’ useful in places where brilliant primary-colored tulips might be too aggressive.
Plant It Generously
As with most tulips, ‘Apricot Beauty’ improves dramatically when planted in groups.
Five bulbs will show you what the cultivar looks like.
Twenty-five begin to create a landscape effect.
Fifty planted in a broad irregular drift can produce a wonderful wash of salmon, peach and apricot.
Historic-bulb specialist Old House Gardens quotes garden writer Ann Lovejoy as saying that ‘Apricot Beauty’ should be planted “by the bagful.”
That seems sensible advice.
Soft colors tolerate mass planting especially well. A hundred scarlet tulips can shout across the landscape. A hundred ‘Apricot Beauty’ tulips produce something more like a warm glow.
Apricot and Purple
One of the finest companions for ‘Apricot Beauty’ is deep purple.
The RHS-associated descriptions specifically note how well its salmon-apricot coloring works with purple.
Deep violet, plum and near-black tulips provide weight and contrast, making the lighter flowers appear more luminous.
This is particularly effective if the purple tulips are planted behind or among the apricot ones rather than arranged in alternating rows.
Gardens generally look better when they don't resemble checkerboards.
Apricot and White
For something quieter, pair ‘Apricot Beauty’ with white or ivory.
White emphasizes the warm coloring without competing with it.
White narcissus can be particularly effective if you select cultivars whose flowering period overlaps. Cream-colored flowers soften the combination still further.
Against a white house, pale stone wall or gray weathered fence, the effect can be exceptionally handsome.
Pink, Peach and Salmon
Another possibility is to abandon contrast altogether and create a tonal planting.
Combine ‘Apricot Beauty’ with tulips in blush pink, salmon, peach and pale orange.
The individual colors flow into one another, producing a planting that looks almost painterly.
This works especially well in cottage gardens and traditional mixed borders, where rigid blocks of color can sometimes look too formal.
Add blue forget-me-nots beneath them and the whole scheme comes alive.
Blue at Their Feet
Low blue flowers are particularly useful beneath apricot tulips.
Forget-me-nots, grape hyacinths (Muscari) and other small blue spring flowers provide complementary contrast without competing with the tulips for height.
The cool blue makes the warm apricot appear warmer.
It is one of those garden combinations based on elementary color theory that doesn't look theoretical at all when it is flowering.
It simply looks right.
Excellent for Containers
‘Apricot Beauty’ is also particularly good in pots and containers.
Its relatively short, sturdy stems are well suited to container culture, and placing the flowers closer to eye level makes their delicate coloration easier to appreciate.
It is also a traditional forcing tulip, valued for bringing into early bloom under controlled conditions. Old House Gardens specifically lists it as suitable for forcing.
For an outdoor spring container, plant the bulbs densely.
A large aged terracotta pot filled entirely with ‘Apricot Beauty’ would need very little embellishment.
If you want companions, tuck blue violas or forget-me-nots around the edge.
Plant It Near Outdoor Living Areas
Because it is fragrant, consider ‘Apricot Beauty’ for places where people actually spend time:
near the front steps, beside a terrace, along a garden walk or around a bench.
The fragrance isn't going to roll across the garden like an old Southern gardenia. It is subtler than that.
You need to get reasonably close.
That makes the scent feel almost like a reward for stopping to examine the flower.
A Fine Cut Flower
‘Apricot Beauty’ also makes an excellent cut tulip, and specialist growers continue to recommend it for cutting.
Its unusual color is especially useful in arrangements.
Combine it with cream, white, lavender or deep purple, or simply fill a vase with ‘Apricot Beauty’ alone.
Because the flowers continue to develop after cutting, their changing coloration becomes especially noticeable indoors.
And unlike many beautiful tulips, this one contributes a little fragrance to the room as well.
Growing ‘Apricot Beauty’
Plant bulbs in fall in fertile, well-drained soil, preferably in full sun.
The RHS recommends planting tulips approximately 4 to 6 inches deep, with protection from excessive wet and very strong winds.
Good drainage is essential.
After flowering, remove the spent flowers if you hope to retain the bulbs, but allow the foliage to remain until it yellows naturally. The leaves are rebuilding the bulb's reserves for the following year.
Like many highly bred tulips, ‘Apricot Beauty’ may not perform indefinitely in every garden. Yet it has acquired something of a reputation for persistence under favorable conditions; Dutch bulb sources note that it can return when grown in a sunny, nutritious site.
For dependable display, however, gardeners in difficult tulip climates may prefer to supplement older bulbs with fresh ones periodically.
An Award-Winning Old Favorite
‘Apricot Beauty’ has received the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit, and specialist growers note that it has won multiple awards over its long history.
But perhaps its greatest distinction is simply that gardeners still want it.
Since C. van der Vlugt van Kimmenade introduced it in 1953, thousands of new tulips have entered the market. Many have disappeared again.
‘Apricot Beauty’ remains.
Its success isn't difficult to understand. It combines early flowering, sturdy stems, fragrance and an exceptionally subtle mixture of apricot, salmon, peach and pink.
Plant it beside purple for drama. Surround it with white for elegance. Let blue forget-me-nots wander beneath it. Or plant a great drift of ‘Apricot Beauty’ by itself.
Some tulips are fashionable for a season.
‘Apricot Beauty’ has had more than seventy springs to prove that beauty lasts.
Return to GoGardenNow.com.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment