As i sit down, I look over to see what the first days of spring brought the garden, and the remnants it leaves behind. One of the first signs that Spring and warm weather have arrived, are Tulips. They are one of the earliest blooming flowers, filling gardens with beautiful colors and shapes, almost always bringing a smiling to one’s face. I don’t know what it is about tulips, but they always remind me of happiness. Now as their season fades, what remains are petals withering into the dirt, and the last few hanging onto its stem until it can’t any longer. Each year there’s an abundance of them in the garden, but it seems that my father planted more bulbs this year than others, or that the varieties that brightened the garden were just too special not to notice. After the harsh winter, the garden was all I had my heart set on, and these tulips made each morning walk, and after run stretch worthwhile.
Last year I began documenting my garden, strolling and really taking in each detail and piece of life that was growing in the tiniest of corners. I didn’t get around to placing all my photos into a book, but I did manage to share them all with you in my Into the Garden series, a favorite of yours and mine, so it couldn’t be more perfect that I start this year’s first post with one of Spring’s first blooms, Tulips. 
If you know anything about Tulips, they react to just about anything in their environment. In the height of the day’s sunshine and heat, they will open so big they don’t even look like tulips, and then later close back up into its familiar shape with just a slight drop in temperature. They also lean toward the direction of the sun, so they can be standing upright at noon, then bend in ways you don’t understand throughout the day. It’s one of the many reason I love tulips, for they make us understand the amazing beauty and life that is nature. They’re not temperamental, as some would say, but instead they adapt to change and their surroundings bravely.
I have so many pictures of all these beautiful tulips because each one was just beyond unique, no matter the day I spent walking and snapping photos of them. Each time I took a close look at each, there was something different and special about it that I hadn’t seen before. These pictures document my tulips from their budding stage to full open blooms during a very sunny morning, to evenings while the sun set.
The coloring of the “Parrot” tulips was just extraordinary. I mean reds and yellows so bright, I had to actually tone down the color while editing these photos. There were more of these than any other variety, and they gave the garden so much life.
The coloring on the traditional shaped “Pink Impression” tulips look as if an artist grabbed their paint brush and lightly brushed strokes of pink onto the petals.
It’s too hard for me to choose a favorite, I love them all for different reasons, but if I had to, it would be the White and “Angelique” varieties. Once opened, the double-flowered Angelique tulip elegantly resemble peonies, making it an elegant flower.
Look at beautiful it blooms!
Once fully bloomed these white tulips were exquisite. They were grouped together, so it was always a sight to see them all opened and bunched together. With a yellow center and light purple stigma, these beauties, my other favorites, looked like tropical hibiscus flowers. 
My garden is my happy place, and I can’t wait to see what follows the beauty that were these tulips.
Beautiful series! Love all the great colors and textures 🙂
Thank you very much Laura 🙂
Nice writing and pretty photos!
Thank you!