NOVEMBER and December are the traditional months for planting tulips - earlier planting can result in frost damage to shoot tips. Choose a dry day for planting the bulbs and avoid putting them into frosted or water-logged soil.

Tulips prefer well-drained soil in full sun and may rot in waterlogged areas. Plant them 10cm - 20cm deep depending on the size of the bulb, and lift when the foliage has turned yellow. Store in a dry, frost-free place until the following November when they can be put out once again.

If the bulbs are planted deeply it is possible to leave them undisturbed for two or three years although acid or neutral soil will have to be limed.

However, because garden tulips tend to deteriorate or disappear when left in the ground, the usual practice is to lift them every year.

There are many varieties of tulip, the genus of which is split into divisions according to the height of the plant and when it flowers.

Divisions one-11 are called Garden Tulips and their ancestry is not usually known.

Divisions 12-15 are the botanical tulips, all of which are species or hybrids of known species. In division one for example are the Single Early Tulips which grow between 22.5cm-40cm tall and flower early to mid-April. Varieties include Apricot Beauty with deep orange-tinged, salmon pink flowers, white Diana and red Brilliant Star.

Lily Flowered Tulips in division six flower early to mid May with elegant single blooms on strong stems. The long petals are reflexed at the tips and come in a range of shades - well- shaped yellow on West Point, orange and scented on Ballerina and cream with red bands on Marilyn.

Queen Of Night, a Single Late Tulip in division five, has almost black petals and Blue Heron, lilac, and Burgundy Lace, wine red, are from the showy Fringed Tulips in division seven. These flower from early to late May with single blooms that are finely fringed at the edges.

When buying tulip bulbs, look for a firm bulb that is heavy for its size and with no root growth. Stem growth should also be absent and the neck and base of the bulb should be firm and rot free. Avoid bulbs with spindly, pale stem growth, active root growth, missing tunic (the skin on the bulb) and surface mould or disease.

Updated: 15:51 Monday, January 21, 2002