I've been antsy to photograph a bit the past few days, knowing that there is so much in bloom right now in the garden. However, the sunny weather in Vancouver hasn't been conducive. Harsh sun causes too much contrast and shadow for flower photography, according to the “rules”.

This shot is from a couple weekends ago, a species tulip. Most of the tulips you commonly see planted in landscapes are hybrids (with an interesting history - see Tulipomania). At the garden, our focus is on wild species of documented origin, so the flowers tend to be smaller and not as flashy, since hybrid tulips are bred for size, pattern and colour. Still, there's much to appreciate with species tulips (and early hybrids), not the least of which is knowing that they are the cause of one of the greatest economic bubbles of all time.