Waterlily tulip
Tulipa kaufmanniana · Liliaceae
The earliest tulips: long buds, often red outside, that open flat in the sun into creamy or yellow stars like waterlilies.
- Size
- 8 in tall, 6 in wide
- Zones
- 3 to 7
- Light
- Full sun
- Flowers
- Late March to mid April
- Pets
- Toxic (moderate)
- Job in a bed
- Bulb layer
A bed built around waterlily tulip
The planner designed this bed around waterlily tulip when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why waterlily tulip stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Bloody cranesbill 'Max Frei' × 8, pink
- 2 Leadwort × 8, blue
- 3 False sunflower 'Summer Sun' × 3, yellow
- 4 Tatarian aster 'Jindai' × 3, purple
- 5 Arborvitae 'Mr. Bowling Ball' × 1, grey-green leaves
- 6 Bergenia 'Bressingham White' × 3, white
- 7 Waterlily tulip × 8, red
- 8 Star of Persia × 4, purple
Why this plant
- The only red.
Why here
- Near the front. At 8 in it stands ahead of bergenia 'Bressingham White' (14 in) without hiding it.
- 8 plants in 2 handfuls. In the gaps between other plants, which fill the space when the bulb is not in growth.
Why now
- In flower for four weeks. From late March to mid April.
- Opens the season. For its first two weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
- Leaves gone by midsummer. They die back and leave bare ground. A perennial that comes up late stands beside it, and grows over the gap.
Planned as an English border: 6 of the 6 groups (100%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Cool colours (pink, blue and purple) with yellow and red as the warm notes, and white to calm things between them. The front edge is finished with bloody cranesbill 'Max Frei' and leadwort.
The planner's own design check: 12 Excellent, 5 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where waterlily tulip goes in a border
At 8 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is low (6 to 12 in).
Its job: bulb layer. Small bulbs planted in handfuls of five or seven in the gaps between other plants, for colour before the perennials wake up.
They flower with the early daffodils, weeks ahead of the main tulip season. Plant them where the low spring sun will open the flowers.
- Very early tulips
- Rock gardens
- The front of a bed
What to plant with waterlily tulip
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Daffodil 'Tete-a-Tete': in flower together for four weeks, from late March.
- Grape hyacinth.
- Creeping phlox.
Questions about waterlily tulip
Does waterlily tulip need sun or shade?
Waterlily tulip grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day).
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does waterlily tulip grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 7. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Above zone 7 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does waterlily tulip flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late March to mid April. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 3 | Mid April to early May |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Early April to late April |
| Zone 5 | Late March to mid April |
| Zone 6 | Late March to mid April |
| Zone 7 | Mid March to early April |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should waterlily tulip be planted?
5 in (12 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 6 in (15 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 8 in (20 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many waterlily tulip plants do I need?
At 5 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 74 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 26 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 238 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as handfuls of five or seven, in the gaps between other plants.
In the bed above, the planner used eight in two groups.
Is waterlily tulip poisonous to dogs and cats?
Yes: moderate toxicity to dogs, cats and horses. The bulbs are the most poisonous part and cause vomiting, drooling and diarrhoea in pets. Handling the bulbs can irritate skin.
Rated from NC State Extension and the ASPCA. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.
Do deer eat waterlily tulip?
They may. NC State does not list it as resistant to deer or rabbits. Where they visit, protect it, or plant it among ones they avoid.
What can I plant to hide waterlily tulip's leaves after it flowers?
A bulb's leaves have to be left to yellow for about six weeks after flowering, to feed next year's flowers. Plant it among perennials that come up late and spread wide, and they grow over the leaves as they fade:
- Lady's mantle: 18 in tall and 24 in wide, in flower late May to early July.
- Catmint 'Walker's Low': 24 in tall and 2½ ft wide, in flower mid May to mid September.
- Garden chrysanthemum: 24 in tall and 24 in wide, in flower mid September to late October.
What does waterlily tulip look like in winter?
Waterlily tulip is underground: it dies back after flowering and waits as a bulb until spring. Mark where it is, so a fork does not find it first.
More Tulipa
- Darwin hybrid tulip Tulipa (Darwin hybrids)
- Greigii tulip Tulipa greigii
- Lady tulip Tulipa clusiana
- Tarda tulip Tulipa tarda
- Tulip Tulipa
- Tulip 'Angelique' Tulipa 'Angelique'
- Tulip 'Apeldoorn' Tulipa 'Apeldoorn'
- Tulip 'Ballerina' Tulipa 'Ballerina'
- Tulip 'Fusilier' Tulipa praestans 'Fusilier'
- Tulip 'Lilac Wonder' Tulipa saxatilis 'Lilac Wonder'
- Tulip 'Purissima' Tulipa 'Purissima'
- Tulip 'Queen of Night' Tulipa 'Queen of Night'
- Tulip 'Spring Green' Tulipa 'Spring Green'
- Turkestan tulip Tulipa turkestanica
In these guides
- Garden plants toxic to cats
- Garden plants toxic to dogs
- Plants for a white garden
- Silver and grey-leaved plants
Every fact on record
- Type
- Bulb
- Size
- 8 in (20 cm) tall, 6 in (15 cm) wide
- Plant
- 5 in (12 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Late March to mid April; open bowls; white, yellow, red, pink
- Leaves
- Medium texture, summer-dormant; grey-green
- Shape
- Upright, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 7
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Liliaceae
- Comes from
- Turkistan
Checked against NC State Extension and ASPCA poison lists. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.