SINGAPORE — When you think of tulips, you think of Holland, windmills and Dutch maids. But Gardens By The Bay’s latest Tulipmania show urges you to go further afield — all the way to Turkey, in fact.

Yes, it may surprise many that one of the world’s popular flowers has its origins not in Europe, but in Asia, going all the way back to the 1500s.

Tulipmania Rediscovered, which opened to the public today (April 8), emphasises that fact with its “carpet-style garden” presentation amid a Persian-style backdrop.

“Its origins are in Central Asia, way before it went to Holland and the Dutch,” said Marziah Omar, assistant director of Flower Field Design at Gardens By The Bay. Indeed, it was in the grand gardens of the Ottoman Empire sultans that Europeans first encountered the exotic flower — and its English name was derived from “tulipan”, the Turkish word for turbans (as it resembled the sultans’ turbans). (In case you’re curious, tulips are called “lale” in Turkish.)

It’s an unusual theme for the fourth edition of the very popular flower show. But after previous Tulipmanias taking on fairytale themes or even bringing in the Dutch children’s book character Miffy, “this year, we wanted to travel back in time”, said Omar.

And travel to the Netherlands, too, of course, where they obtained their tulip bulbs from different suppliers in Lisse, where one of the world’s largest flower gardens, Keukenhof, is found.

The exhibition comprises 110,000 tulip bulbs, but these will be staggered in batches in the climate-controlled Flower Dome, since they bloom for two weeks and the display has to be changed regularly (which is done after hours — up until the wee hours of the next morning).

On display will be 60 varieties of tulips — which is just the tip of the iceberg, considering there are 3,000 registered varieties in the world. Tulips come from the same family as lilies but are actually different — and incidentally, the next Flower Dome show in June will be, for the first time, on the latter.

“The tulip is a very well hybridised flower and there are new tulips coming out every year,” she said. For this edition, “you’ll see a lot of colours — purples, yellows, reds, pinks and black —it’s so dark it’s like dark chocolate or dark purple. There are times when it’s a carpet of colours, where some will be more dominant than others.”

So when would be the best time to catch these flowers at their best? Aside from weekdays being an obvious choice to avoid the weekend crowds, it really depends, said Omar. “There are people who come in the early part of the morning because they like to take photographs during that time. But it’s also a completely different picture at night. There are also some visitors who are more interested in seeing flowers before they bloom.”

As for wanting to cultivate your own tulip garden at home in tropical Singapore, well, that might prove a little difficult. “The bulbs need to go through a very long winter process. You might want to get some bulbs and put them in the fridge — but the chances (of survival) are really dicey. On the other hand, you can always go and buy cut flowers,” she quipped.

Tulipmania Rediscovered runs until May 22, 9am to 9pm, at the Flower Dome, Gardens By The Bay. Admission charges to the conservatories apply. (There will be a 50 per cent discount for local senior citizens for admission to the Flower Dome.) Free daily tours are also available at 11am and 3pm (1pm and 6pm on April 16 and 17, May 7 and 8).

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ALTERNATIVE TULIP TRIP

This month, Changi Airport also has its own tulip display — featuring some 16,000 stalks — across three different spots in the transit and public areas. It’s to mark the launch of Singapore Airlines’ new A350 direct flight to Amsterdam — so if you’re keen to fly off, you might also want to check out the Keukenhof Flower Exhibition in Lisse, which runs until May 16.