How a small red tulip links Jerusalem and Kew

The leaves of the native Israeli Tulipa agenensis are being analysed by Kew’s Jodrell Laboratory

The people on the Working Holiday at the Gardens enjoyed a fascinating tour with Scientific Director, Dr Ori Fragman-Sapir.  One of the plants he pointed out is the native Tulipa agenensis (Sun-eye tulip).  It is small, perhaps only ankle-high, with scarlet petals.  Inside, it has a distinctive yellow stripe which separates the black centre from the scarlet petals.  The tulips are not pollinated by bees as they cannot see the colour red, which effectively makes the tulips invisible to them.  Instead they are pollinated by small beetles, which eat the pollen and sometimes also sleep in the flower!  In arid conditions the tulips’ leaves take on a distinctive wave.   Ori is collaborating with Dr Mike Fay, the head of genetics at Kew Gardens’ Jodrell Laboratory in London, to discover how closely they are related to other tulip species around the world.  Leaves have been collected from tulips in Israel and sent to the Jodrell Laboratory for analysis.