Tulip festival in Shrinagar is ongoing. It is the most mesmerizing festival in India. Tulips are an impressive spring flower that comes in a rainbow of colours and many different varieties. The beauty of this garden can be enjoyed from early spring through early summer. 
Time to enjoy these wonderful flowers that symbolize spring. To usher in the new season, we present the four most interesting facts about tulips.

1. In the 17th century, a tulip bulb could be worth as much as a house:
At the beginning of the 17th century, a huge tulip madness known as tulip mania erupted. The Republic of the Seven United Provinces of the Netherlands were going mad about the flower. These bulbs had become a risky asset and were worth a lot of money. During this period, you could buy an entire canal house in Amsterdam for the price of a single tulip bulb. 

2. The name ‘tulip’ comes from the Persian word for ‘turban’:
Tulips come basically from Iran, Afghanistan, and Kazakhstan. From there, travellers took the bulbs to Turkey where sultans wore a tulip on their turban. This headgear is known as a 'tulipan' in Persian. This is how the tulip got its name.

3. The Dutch climate provides the world with tulip bulbs from Holland:
Once tulips were presented to the Netherlands at the end of the 16th century, they created an enormous volume of interest. People experimented with growing them inside and around their homes. With the demand for tulips rising, the more professional approach was applied. The Netherlands’ coastal zone proved extremely beneficial for this purpose. The mild winters and cool summers provided by a maritime climate, sandy soil with good drainage and a constant water level, helped promote the cultivation of tulips so well in the Netherlands.

4. When you give tulips, you also give a message:
Tulips are special flowers. If you have a tulip in the 16th century, you were giving riches. After all, the flower was exceptionally popular in those days. Now, the message you give depends on the tulip’s color. Red tulips, for example, express impetuous love. And black tulips say, ‘My love for you is so great that I would give up anything for you.’