After a long winter, tulips are one of the earliest flowers in the garden. Hybrid tulips make a big splash. These voluptuous flowers we love have been bred by selection from wild, less showy varieties originally from the Mideast. Most of these hybrids are not perennial and do not bloom reliably after their first year. Species tulips do! Try planting clusiana ‘Stellata’ tulips. By day a six petaled white star closing for the night showing their pink outer petals.