Meet the Paintings - Bed of Tulips

Celebrating the coming of spring, here's the first of my 'Meet the Paintings' - the appropriately seasonal 'Bed of Tulips'.

I've been to Amsterdam many times over the years, and every time I go I bring back bags of tulip bulbs to plant in my garden.  The exotic pictures of such exuberant blooms promised on the front of those packets in the flower market are irresistible.   

These are the tulips from those bulbs, including my pride and joy , my black 'Queen of the Night'.

The queen has been a little shy for the past couple of years, and sadly abdicated completely last year, but I'm still looking.

Every spring, my beautiful tulips give me such joy, especially with the backdrop of my magnificent cherry tree in blossom (at the moment, it barely has buds though).

They are a burst of pure colour, and a constant seasonal pleasure to look forward to.

Her Majesty Finally Arrives

Looking in distinctly better shape than last year, and bang on time, here's my beautiful Queen of the Night tulip, brought as a bulb from Amsterdam.

Hullo again! 

You can have a look at her regal progress from 2012 onwards HERE.

Queen of the Night

Now, regular readers will know that around this time of year, I post a picture of my favourite tulip making her welcome spring arrival.  It's my magnificent Queen of the Night bulb, which I await which much eager anticipation.  

Here's how she looked on 2 May 2012...

 Serene

29 May 2013..

 Regal

23 April last year...

Dignified

and 13 May this year...

Deid

I think the Queen may have abdicated... :-(

Her Majesty Arrives...

 

Here she is, my lone Queen of the Night tulip, all the way from Amsterdam.

As you may (or may not) know, I have, over the years, accumulated heaps of tulip bulbs, all bought from the flower market in Amsterdam, as models for my paintings.  Usually, there is a good supply of Queen of the Night in there.  Only one has ever come up.

In 2012 she popped up on 2 May.  Last year she dallied in the earth until 29 May.  This year, she's bright and early, putting in an appearance whilst it's still only April.

A Regal Arrival...

Well, look who it is in my flower bed.  Its Her Majesty, The Queen of the Night.

She's a whole four weeks later than last year, but it's still good to see her.

I've blogged before about the hundreds of Dutch bulbs that I've brought back with me and tucked under my garden soil, only to have them come up a riot of red and yellow rather than black.  This is my one and only Queen of the Night.

And quite right too...

Her Majesty arrives...

Fanfare of trumpets!  

Fashionably late, but with an admirable sense of theatre, it's none other than the Queen of the Night herself, who's just regally popped up in my flower bed.