Mislabeled Rembrandt tulip

I bought these last September labeled, no less, as the gorgeous purple flamed white tulip Zurel. There were only two or three packs left on the store rack and I took two of them - ten tulips. I was really excited because I had not expected I'd find this relatively new variety locally, and I've continued to look forward to finally seeing them in my own garden for months.

And what do you know. For the past couple of days I've been waiting for the purple to show because I noticed the flowers were just about to open. Something only seemed to be wrong with the leaves, namely their white edge, which I didn't think belonged to this variety. Alas. This morning, while taking pictures to document my tulips before they fade, it finally struck me that these are not Zurel. There is no bold purple flame, there's only a red and very delicate one. Combined with the white variegation on the leaves, it can only mean one thing. They are Happy Generation. How disappointing. Especially that I already have a bunch of Happy Generation growing merely a few yards away, where I planted it two years ago.

And I bought these tulips from one of the most respectable suppliers in town. Frankly, I didn't expect they'd sell mislabeled bulbs. It's the first time ever I've had what can be called a bad experience with them.

I'm still on the lookout for the glamorous Zurel. I've just checked madame Miho's blog and discovered that she also planted them this year (either that or in 2007, I can't be sure because her blog is in Japanese). Clearly got more lucky than I did. I can't link directly but see pics in her Garden Diary under April 30th, 2009. I think she has them planted with Arabian Mystery (also a very appealing tulip, albeit on the short side) and Black Hero, which I mentioned in my previous post. Check out how gorgeous they look. I'll definitely be buying them again this fall.