Tulip 'Red Riding Hood'

At least I think that's what this one is called. I love variegated foliage and it's not as common in tulips as in some other plants. Don't think I've ever seen a daffodil with striped leaves, come to think of it. These also are growing in gritty, extremely well draining soil where they can bake in the summer heat. Tulips which are closer to the species seem to be more reliable, but I suppose that could be said of lots of plants. It is a fairly common complaint among some daylily growers, especially those in more northerly climates, that some of the modern daylilies, especially those of the evergreen persuasion which are bred in the south, just don't have the hardiness of the older ones. True, there are more buds (hence more flowers), but if the stems can't support the weight, is that really an advantage? Ditto for some of the peonies with lovely huge very double blooms. I like plants that can stand up by themselves and don't require me to buy or devise some sort of crutches for them. Despite the fact that I spend at least 10 hours a day gardening, with a garden this size, plants really have to be able to get by without constant attention. Now, I do spend a lot of time weeding, though not as much as I used to because we have eliminated some weed types and we mulch heavily, and a lot of time pruning and tweaking, and we do water when needed, but I think a garden should also be a place where you can just sit and enjoy the plants and not constantly worry about what you need to do next. Gosh, and I though I was just going to write about tulips this morning. :-)