Wakefield tulip society show

[Mick McLoughlin]

Wakefield and North of England Tulip Society

175th Annual Show Sat. 8th May 2010

Primrose Hall, Horbury near Wakefield.

Entries 10am to 12 noon. Open to the public 2.30pm to 4.30pm.

Presentation of trophies 4pm.

I hope to make it this afternoon, anybody else going?. Will try to post some pics later

[Mick McLoughlin]

We managed to get to Horbury for the Wakefield and North of England Tulip Society annual show.
Spent an interesting hour viewing the specialist tulips so well grown and displayed in their beer bottles (there is probably a reason but I don't know what it is).
It was their 175th year and they had cake to celebrate with tulips made of icing.
The benches were laid out with the different classes of tulips.
Unlike alpine shows the officials weren't averse to pointing out the finer points of a bloom to interested people.

[Maggi Young]

Looks like a great show  and the cake and its decorations are as good as the real thing!


Re "the officials weren't averse to pointing out the finer points of a bloom to interested people" .... to be fair, it's a lot easier to do that when the flower is already cut ( therefore as good as dead) in and sitting in a beer bottle. Manhandling flowers on a pot grown plant might do lots of damage to a hoped for seed crop or even an entry in next week's show........

Though a good discussion of a plant can be undertaken with no interference to the plant at all... and there's a fair amount of that goes on to enthusiastic onlookers ..... we have chatty mermbers who specialise in that!

[Mick McLoughlin]

There was a photographic display from the Hortus Bulborum in the Netherlands, who also made a presentation to the society. There was an artistic display also but I didn't get any pictures from there.
There was also the presentation of trophies while we were there of which there seemed to be quite a large number of.
Some of the class entries now, I don't know what the distinguishes the various types.
12 blooms same flower
12 blooms different varieties
12 rectified varieties
1 breeder 1 flamed 1 feathered

[Onion]

Mike,

thank you for sharing these pictures with us.

[Mick McLoughlin]

This won best overall bloom.
Constable Burton
The rest are ones that caught my eye for one reason or another in no particular order, apart from alphabetical.
Burning Heart
Curly Sue
Davenport
Dr Hardy
Eyecatcher and single flower
Flaming Parrot
Hemisphere

[Mick McLoughlin]

Maggi I quite agree - and with the size of some of the plants you wouldn't want to be lifting them even if you could.
Onion - glad you like them.
James Wild
Lambada
Queen of the Night
Shirley (which was Mandy's favourite)
Toyota
Wakefield
Tulipa batalini 'Bright Gem'
and eventually one I recognised
Tulipa clusianna 'Cynthia'

[Maggi Young]

My word, what fabulous blooms....it is easy to see why artisits have always loved to paint these fancy tulips... they are so beautiful.... even if the fear of virus (which I know some  say is not transmitted)makes me  nervous about having them near our bulbs, I really enjoy seeing them and their exotic colours and markings.
'Constable Burton' is magnificent .... coincidentally Ian's Mum's family are called Burton, from Leeds! Uncle Arthur was a police Inspector !

Found this link to the house (not open) and gardens at Constable Burton;
http://www.constableburtongardens.co.uk


'Shirley ' is pure rasberry ripple, good enough to eat.

[johnw]

Marvellous.

But what IS that black and white in the First Prize 12 rectified group?

I am surprised that 'Toyota' wasn't a runaway favourite.

Must look for Eyecathcer.

johnw

[Mick McLoughlin]

John
Just checked my original picture but can't make out the name.
If anybody is close by and is interested the blooms are still on show tomorrow
Cheers
mick

[Brian Ellis]

Thanks for posting these Mick, one show I have always fancied visiting.  I believe the reason for showing in bottles is simply that there were a lot of them available, at the time the Society started I shouldn't think many 'ordinary' people would have had suitable receptacles to use at a show and, at least this way, everyone was showing without advantage?

[FrazerHenderson]

Mick, Brian

Why beer bottles?  According to the Wakefield and North of England Tulip Society booklet (which is great little read) the early shows were held in public houses which provided easy access to an ideal container. Up until the end of the second world war earthenware bottles from late 18th early/19th century were used. After one show the bottles were mistaken for rubbish and taken by binmen and therefore the society were forced to use another container and at that time brown beer bottles were in ready supply. A few earthernware bottles used for showing were salvaged and now reside within Wakefield Museum.

http://www.karisgarden.com/chapters/tulipaner.htm

Thanks Mick for the photographs and taking the time and trouble to share them with others it is much appreciated. I've always been meaning to visit the show - but work and life intervene - to enjoy the beauty of mosaic virus as reflected in feathered and flamed tulips and your report is grand compensation.

(Feathers have markings constrained to the edge of the petal; flames have markings on both the edge of the petal and a beam or stripe up the centre of the petal.)

http://www.tulipsociety.co.uk/

 http://www.karisgarden.com/chapters/tulipaner.htm  

[Brian Ellis]

Cheers Frazer, at least I was on the right track

[mark smyth]

I dont see anything on the tulip society home page

[Lvandelft]

Thanks for showing Mick! I really did not expect that they grow and show "normal" tulips too.
Was today at Keukenhof, but they did not show them there this year (rather expensive trip of course).
Here is the link of pictures I showed last year :
http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=3260.msg94593#msg94593

Strange that this year with the cold weather many plants are later than last year, but this show is a week earlier