Tulipmania

Blipped these tulips in the park on today’s walk. Seeing them reminded me of a book I once read (can’t remember who wrote it or what it was called) about tulipmania.

By the 1630s tulip speculation, or tulipmania, was rampant throughout the Netherlands and both rich and poor were speculating in the tulip trade, similar to the stock market in modern times.  Some people sold their land and houses in order to invest.  Single bulbs of special varieties sometimes sold for sums that were more than ten times the annual income of someone in the middle class.  Some of the most coveted varieties were tulips that had lines and streaks rather than a solid color.   This effect is actually caused by a virus that ‘breaks’ the color on the plant.   In 1637 the tulip market crashed leaving many Dutch penniless.

The moral of that story is don’t invest in tulip bulbs, stick with loo rolls!

I hope you have had a good day.