15 bulbs 260964-15 £9.95 Delivery late September
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When in stock, please allow 2-3 days for despatch.
30 bulbs 260964-30 £17.95 Delivery late September
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When in stock, please allow 2-3 days for despatch.
More Details

Glossy like a racehorse on tall, elegant stems – a cracking tulip!

This can be gift wrapped in our exclusive hessian sack, with ribbon and a Sarah Raven gift card. You will be able to add this to your basket once you begin the checkout process. To add a gift message to your order, simply fill out the details at the delivery stage of the checkout.

Please note: only items which are showing ‘in stock’ can be gift wrapped.

Genus Tulipa
Group/Species Triumph

Single-flowered cultivars, stem of medium height, flowering in mid-season. Good lasting properties. Conical flowers, up to 7.5cm wide. Click here for more information about tulip groups.
Variety National Velvet
Type Perennial (grown as an annual)
Common Name Tulip
Border Position Container Garden
Bulb Size 12/+

For more info on bulb sizes, click here.
Soil Type Broad Tolerance
Scent Unscented
Site Full Sun
Moisture Well-drained
Height 60cm (24in)
Spacing Plant pointy end up 10-15cm (4-6in) deep, 8cm (3in) apart. Layer bulbs to a depth of 25-30cm (10-12in) if room is tight. Remember to add plenty of grit if your soil is heavy. For containers, space bulbs 1-2cm (½-1in) apart if planting in a single layer, give them more room, 2-3cm (1-1½in) if planting in a bulb lasagne.
Sowing, Seeds, Planting Plant outdoors October - December.
Care Tips Don’t plant tulips until mid-late October. Plant pointy end up 10-15cm deep, 8cm apart in borders (less in containers). You can use a mycorrhizal Bulb Starter. After flowering leave the foliage to die back naturally if you want to reuse the bulbs.
Flowering April - May
Vase Life Tulips make supreme cut flowers. Strip the bottom leaves, tie the stems in paper to hold the stems ram-rod straight and leave to drink for at least 3 hours – or overnight. This helps keep the stems straight, but tulips do continue to grow after picking so curves may appear.
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
  • Sow Under Cover/Plant Indoors
  • Direct Sow/Plant Outdoors
  • Flowers/Harvest
Advice & Videos
Protecting tulips from pests

Protect your tulips this spring from their main pests. This short guide shows you how to avoid tulip fire and squirrels.

Sarah's favourite tulip groups

Sarah talks about her favourite types of tulip groups.

Gardening at home with Sarah | May Tulips

Sarah shares her favourite tulips for companion planting, growing in shade and pots.

Gardening at home with Sarah | The best tulips at Perch Hill

In our latest video, Sarah shares her favourite tulips for picking, pots, borders and grass.

Gardening at home with Sarah | Tulips at Perch Hill

Watch as Sarah discusses her favourite varieties currently growing in the gardens at Perch Hill.

Planting numbers for bulbs in borders

A handy guide for how many alliums, narcissi, tulips, snowdrops and other bulbs to plant in your plot.

How to plant and grow tulips

Find out the best way to plant your tulip bulbs for a great display next spring.

How to plant tulips using a traditional bulb planter

On a particularly blustery autumn day in October, Sarah shows you how to plant tulips with a bulb planter.

How to grow tulips in container pots

Sarah shows you a few different ideas and techniques for planting tulips in container pots, for beautiful spring displays in your garden.

Understanding the 15 different tulip groups

The full list of the different tulip groups, with a little specification, as well as an example. We hope from this you can learn a bit more to help...

A guide through the tulip trial beds at Perch Hill

Sarah guides you through the new tulip varieties she is trialling from her most recent trip to the Netherlands (Hortus Bulborum, Keukenhof). She...

Sarah's blog: The Tulip Garden

We had our first light frost this morning, which has made me start thinking about planting tulips...

Related Videos
Delivery

Bulb Delivery - When in stock, please allow 2-3 days for despatch.

Click here to find out more information about our delivery rates and times.

Tulip 'National Velvet' reviews

* * * * * Average based on 3 reviews

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Reviewed 26th June 2019 by Edward

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Reviewed 26th June 2019 by Caroline

Mid - Late flowering in my garden in two pots. Gorgeous sultry colour, but not as robust as I had hoped. Performance was ok, but some were attacked by tiny snails that devoured the flowers before they really got going. Will be vigilant next year!

Most divine tulip

* * * * *

Reviewed 18th July 2017 by Debbie

I planted this tulip in large patio containers last autumn. They gave the most rich, stunning display. They lasted for weeks too. They actually look like velvet. I planted them in cream wooden boxes and their colour was amazing against the cream. I will definitely be planting more this autumn.

Read more reviews