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One
of the admitted purposes of Tulipes Sauvages Association is to try to
awaken any inclination one may have of growing these rather uncommon
plants. However, some did not await us and work, for a long time already,
to promote their preferred plants |
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For
this reason, M. Josselin (active member in the French Iris and Bulbs
Society) asked us recently to visit his plantings of botanical
tulips. |
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We therefore went to visit this tulipophile so that we could admire his plantings and ask him a few questions. |
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A
few ten's of kilometers from Compiègne (Oise, in the north
of France), M. Josselin is fortunate to live in a house graced
by a very large garden. Certainly some of his plants are potted, but
the majority of the species are planted in the groun |
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M. Josselin, how long have you been growing tulips and what attracted
you to them ? |
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| Since the age of 6 or 8 (and I am over 60 today.) Therefore I already had hundreds in my parents' garden. Some were very nice horticultural tulips, "Couleur cardinal" for instance, that I still plant to this day ! At this time, it is still in bud. Why do I like tulips? Well, I was never able to answer that question. It brings me back to my childhood, but that certainly can't explain it all. | |||||||||||
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At this time how many do you
have ? |
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About
80 species, if one counts the different forms of T. clusiana or
T. humilis. I buy them directly from Holland or from a few suppliers
in France, but I also trade with amateurs. |
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How do you grow them
? |
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Those
planted in the garden are separated by slate buried in the ground. I
do not water them, never fertilize them and I cut the flower, whether
spent or not, depending on my mood. I like that my tulips live their
lives as naturally as possible. I am aware that in spite of the serarations
there is a risk of their mixing with each other with the passing of
time, but that is not a real concern because I remain vigilant. |
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On
the other hand, I had several problems with the ones in the pots this
year. Here, we had temperatures of -10°C, -13°C this winter.
I was using plastic pots and I lost quite a few. Those that survived
had their leaves burned by the cold or the snow. I think it was more
likely the snow.... Next year, all will be planted out ! |
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Are there any dieseses in your tulips ? |
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I
don't believe that I have any problems in particular. I have a single
virused plant out of the hundreds that I grow. I haven't had the heart
to get rid of it because it is so pretty. It looks like one of the tulips
from the era of Tulipomania. I have satisfied myself to isolate the
plant so that it does not contaminate the others. The biggest problem
I've encountered have been field mice and other rodents. Happily for
us, we have quite a few cats here. It is quite understood that I let
them hunt in the garden. |
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By your estimation, what would be the biggest
difficulty encountered by a commited tulipophile ? |
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(Without hesitating) To learn how to limit yourself ! |
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What is the next tulip that you hope to grow
? |
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A
marvelous historical horticultural tulip, cultivated since 1620,"Zomerschoon".
I found it at a Dutch grower and he offered me some after this fall. |
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M.
Alain Josselin - Translation : Catherine Adam |
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Photos
: Alain Josselin |
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