12 Facts That Explain What Really Happened During The 1600s “Tulip Fever” Crisis

You’ve likely heard it mentioned before. In fact, your economics class may have even studied the phenomena of the 1600s that is now perpetrated as a warning about the perils of the free market.

As the story goes, the world went mad when tulips first came to the Netherlands. A single Semper Augustus bulb, noted for its flame-red and white petals, sold for more than a fashionable mansion, stage coach and garden included.

Following the introduction of tulips to the Dutch, the market continue to grow for years with traders offering up tulips for exorbitant prices. And then, just like all financial bubbles, the tulip market collapsed.

This incredible economic phenomena was used as a lesson in economics, a backdrop for novels, and even the settings for Hollywood movies, but there’s a big problem…None of it happened.

While “Tulip Fever” was a real thing, in the centuries since its occurence, it has really been blown out of proportion. So, what is true?

#1 There Was An Economic Boom, But It Wasn’t From Tulips

Perhaps one of the reasons why everyone wants to talk about how tulips made the Netherlands rich is because, at that time, the Netherlands had just grown newly rich–but it had little to do with tulips.

At the turn of the 17th century, the Netherlands gained independence from Spain. Starting in the 1560s, merchants began arriving in port cities like Haarlem, Amsterdam, and Delft.

They established trading outfits, like the famous Dutch East India Company. This led to an explosion at the international level and it did bring the Netherlands an enormous fortune.

#2 There Was A Fascination With The Exotic

The growing and thriving economy brought in new faces, especially wealthy faces. At the economy grew, so did the people’s desire for expanding into new areas of natural history and the exotic. This is what led to Dutch botanist Carolus Clusius establishing a botancial garden in the 1590s at the University of Leiden.

#3 Tulips Were Indeed Given Prominence

Thanks to Carolus Clusius’ work, the tulip rose to a level of admiration and honor. They were originally found growing wild in the mountains along the border of China and Russia, but cultivating tulips was nothing new. Istanbul had been doing so since 1055.

#4 Ottoman Influence Played A Role in Tulip Fever

With the people’s growing interest in the exotic and natural, people in the merchant class acquired goods from the Ottoman Empire as these items fetched among the highest of prices. This also contributed to the tulips’ rise.

It was Sultan Mehmed II of the Ottoman Empire who had 12 gardens with so many flowers that he required nearly 1,000 gardeners to look after them all. Among them, tulips were the most prized and later became a symbol of the Ottomans.

#5 Bulbs Became Very Valuable

The Dutch soon learned that buying tulip seeds wouldn’t provide them with a quick return. That’s because growing tulips from a seed would take 7-12 years before they’d see it flower.

But, they learned that planting a bulb itself meant it could flower just one year later. This led to the selling of bulbs rather than seeds.

#6 Broken Bulbs Became Popular

Tulip traders took a particular interest in “broken bulbs”, which would flower tulips whose petals had a striped, multicolor pattern rather than being a solid color.

The effect was entirely unpredictable, but the demand for these rare “broken bulb” tulips was high. That led to naturalists studying the rare ones that did flower in order to figure out how to reproduce them.

#7 The Name “Tulip Fever” Came From This Fad

Later on, naturalists discovered that their so-called rare “broken bulbs” had a unique pattern caused by a mosaic virus, which made the bulbs sickly and, additionally, less likely to reproduce (hence the rarity).

Broken bulbs, because of their beauty and rarity, were the tulips everyone was after.

When we now think about the high market prices of tulips, those prices were for these broken bulbs, not just any regular tulip.

#8 It Was A Gamble

While naturalists were in the process of studying these “broken bulbs” in hopes of making it big with the ability to consistently produce them, breaking was unpredictable. Tulip Fever really was a gamble; growers were trying everything to produce bizarre variations that would please the public.

#9 Tulip Fever Only Lasted A Week

As much money as the Dutch speculators spent on their bulbs, after planting them and waiting for them to flower the next year, they produced flowers for only about a week.

That might sound absurd when considering how much of a fuss was caused over tulips at the time, but for the lovers of tulips, this was a glorious week for sure.

#10 Their Short Life Increased Their Value

In a way, the fact that tulips were so hard to cultivate and took an abundance of time and appreciation (along with money), it made them even more desirable to the wealthy class who were seeking luxury. It also is what kept the tulip trade afloat for so long–tulip lovers had to keep coming back.

#11 Tulip Fever Wasn’t That Big

The biggest myth behind the tulip craze is that it took ahold of all Dutch society in the 1630s with the poor and the wealthy alike doing everything they could, scraping bottom just to buy these tulips at a high price and then turn around and sell them for more.

The tulip craze has been painted as a huge economic boom, with companies forming just to handle the demand.

In reality, this simply wasn’t the case. There weren’t actually too many people involved, and although the market did die down, the economic repercussions  were minor as the gradually decreasing demand for tulips came while new things moved in to take their spotlight.

#12 They Were Incredibly Expensive

Tulip Craze, Tulip Mania, or Tulip Fever are all still fitting names since parts of the story are still true.

Merchants did frantically engage in the tulip trade because of the high prices they could sell some bulbs for. And, when buyers began announcing they’d no longer be paying the high prices, the market did fall apart.

The market’s fall did cause some crisis, but really only because it went against the expectations of merchants and society.

The tulips didn’t disappear from the Netherlands all together, and neither did the economic success the Netherlands were experiencing at the time.

The world kept spinning, and new bulbs kept flowering.

Are You A Tulip Lover Too?

Tulips remain one of the most sought-after flowers today, and they’re now loved by backyard garden enthusiasts and the wealthy alike. But, you won’t have to pay exorbitant prices to get your hands on a bulb in today’s economy.

In fact, you can get a complete 4-bulb starter pack–vases and all–for just about $30 depending on where you’re shopping, which is a rather reasonable price considering that consumers after a “broken bulb” now can actually guarantee what they’ll be getting.

Thanks to in-depth scientific study of tulips and other flowers, you can now know exactly the color and pattern of any plant you buy before it has even sprouted into a bulb. Which makes planning out your garden a tad bit easier!

Planting Tulips

And, if you happen to have the time to wait, tulip seeds can be purchased for incredible prices now too, with 100-seed packs starting at around $20.

The prices still vary if you want a “designer” tulip that’s striped or patterned in some way, but you can buy it with peace of mind knowing these beautiful flowers didn’t near lead to the Netherlands’ economic collapse all those centuries ago.

Additionally, thanks to the study we’ve done on tulips, growing seasons, and other relevant topics, caring for your tulips today is also a much more straightforward process.

Plant them in the fall and expect the bloom to last up to 2 weeks. Since they’re perennials, they’ll also come back again year after year without you having to do anything but water them.

Plus, you’ll even get to grow bigger, brighter, and more beautiful tulips in your garden now than they could have dreamed of centuries ago due to florists breeding special lines of tulips.

Darwin tulips are known for having larger bulbs, for instance, but they’re far from your only option.

There are currently more than 3,000 registered types of tulips, each one being distinctly different.

Tips for Planting Tulips

Here are some tips that will apply to planting any tulip variety today:

• The bulbs should be kept dry and in a ventilated area until you’re ready to plan them.
• Plant your tulips in a sunny area, and make sure the soil has good drainage
• It’s important the soil has good drainage, otherwise the tulip bulbs will rot if left to sit in wet soil.
• Dig the hole for each bulb three times deep as the bulb is tall.
• Set the bulb in the hole so the pointy end is facing up.
• If you happen to plant them upside down, they’ll still flower, but it will take them longer and they may not be as tall as they would have been.
• While tulips don’t grow well in shade, they tend to do better in cooler weather (under 70 degrees F).
• In hotter weather, tulips may stop flowering after just a few days.
• Once planted, the soil around your tulips should be covered with pine bark or shredded leaves.
• Tulips need to be water regularly once they begin budding.

Looking to learn more about tulips and caring for them in your modern-day garden? You’ll find plenty of resources at your local nursery or at Tulips.com