Every April, Bloms Bulbs tulips fill the borders at Pashley Manor Gardens and Constable Burton Hall for the Tulip Festival. A writer who attends the festival notes that one view they always return to is below the terrace, where tulips run in pinks and magentas along the foot of the house.
Every April at Pashley Manor Gardens in East Sussex, one particular sight always draws me back: the cascading pink and magenta tulips lining the base of the house, with wisteria blooming above on the brickwork. Sipping tea at a nearby café table offers the perfect vantage point to admire the scene. Though it appears spontaneous, careful planning lies behind it—something gardeners can easily adapt for their own spaces.
A family that has been hand-picking bulbs since 1860 and has won 70 Gold Medals between 1948 and 2023 for their Chelsea displays has had some practice in creating beautiful tulip displays. Even so, it is the festival gardens that show their tulips on the biggest scale, with Pashley alone taking more than 50,000 of them.
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Creating a Beautiful Tulip Display
A good group of tulips in the right place beats a hundred bulbs lost at the bottom of the garden. Walking along the long borders at Pashley, one will notice that the tulips are never dotted about, but rather go in as proper groups so the color has some presence.
Later in the border, the same hues reappear strategically, guiding the eye along the path. Scattering bulbs too widely makes them blend in without impact. Instead, examine the empty spaces between shrubs and perennials—they’re ideal spots for adding lively spring color.
Tulip Planting Tips
Pashley’s formal garden uses low box hedges instead of gaps between shrubs and perennials, and each block of tulips sits neatly inside them. Constable Burton Hall, on the other hand, works on a smaller scale, with over 6,000 tulips in the formal and woodland gardens, and every year the borders get a fresh set of color themes and combinations.
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Choosing the Right Tulips
Candy Prince, Purple Prince, and Sunny Prince are early singles of about 40cm and all flower in April, so they stay in proportion with the pot and come out together. They look just as good on their own if one would rather have a pot of one color.
Planting Tulips
If the bulbs have already arrived, they should be kept somewhere cool and dry with plenty of air around them until planting time. Next April, when the first color shows from the kitchen window, one may find they have a small festival of their own.
Strategic Tulip Placement for Maximum Impact
Tulips should be planted in groups to create a bold statement, rather than scattering them individually. Repeating the same variety further along the border draws the eye and enhances visual appeal.