Tulips are among one of the most popular spring flowers. Their variety of colors make the ideal for flower beds and as cut flowers in a vase.
Tulips were introduced to northwest Europe by Oghier Ghislain de Busbecq, Ambassador from Ferdinand I to Suleyman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire in 1554. During his travelles he encountered these beautiful flowers and corresponded back to his homeland that he saw “an abundance of flowers everywhere; Narcissus, hyacinths, and those which in Turkish [are called] Lale, much to our astonishment, because it was almost midwinter, a season unfriendly to flowers” (see Busbecq, qtd. in Blunt, 7).
In Persian culture and literature the tulip is also a favorite. The thirteenth century poet Musharrifu’d-din Saadi, mentioned the flower in his poetry and Iranians often decorate their homes with tulips to welcome the arrival of spring and the Persian New Year.
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