Tulips are my favorite flowers. The first sign of spring during our long dark winters; the first pastel colors after the intense reds and greens of Christmas. I love them! But I´m not alone – tulips are popular in Sweden. Swedes buy most tulips per person in the world, adding up to one million per day. US is still the largest market but the buying pattern of the Swedes- often a bunch per week – is far from matched. So even buying flowers can be culturally different, as well as the value of the flower. We happily buy them for ourselves when we do our weekly grocery shopping, whereas in other countries they might be considered more exclusive. Today– Jan 15 – is the Day of the Tulip in Sweden – “Tulpanens dag”. And yes, I bought some today! In spite of my admiration for tulips I haven’t grown many of them in my garden over the years. You see, it is not only Swedish people that can’t resist them; they seem to be favorite food for part of our wildlife. Last fall though I planted quite a few which I will guard vigorously when the time comes. Actually, due to the mild winter, one or two are peaking up already. As an expat I was lucky to enjoy smaller, botanical tulips in one of my rented gardens.

Updated 2018

Read more about tulips here, Tulpanguiden in Swedish, or just enjoy the pictures!

Small Swedish lesson:

en tulpan – a tulip

tulpaner – tulips

en blomma – a flower

blommor – flowers

en bukett – a bouquet

att slå ut – to bloom/to enter the flowering state

en utslagen tulpan – a blooming tulip

att sloka – to wilt, to flag

vissna – to wither, to shrivel

vissen – shrivelled

en rabatt – a flower bed

en dag – a day

Tulpanens dag – the Day of the Tulip