Bursting with extra petals, double hyacinths were once the most prized. Rediscover their antique charms with this sampler of 4 unique beauties, including our Fall 2008 Bulb of the Year, ‘Chestnut Flower’. Save the Doubles! For zones 5-8aS/10WC.

For 2, 3, or more of each, order additional samplers.

Sample the rich colors and fragrances of these most-endangered bulbs. Easy to force and great in the garden (zones 5-8aS/10WC). We’ll send five different singles, our choice, all terrific!

For 2, 3, or more of each, order additional samplers.

We were shocked when the last Dutch grower abandoned this great Victorian favorite, because in our garden it returns and reblooms better than any other hyacinth. Now thanks to Alan Shipp, the Noah of hyacinths, it’s back! 10-12”, zones 5-7S/9WC, from England. Chart to compare.

The starry, overstuffed florets of this Victorian double are a lovely “dawn pink.” Though double hyacinths were once the most coveted, today only a handful survive. To celebrate and help save their complex, old-fashioned beauty, we named this glorious relic our Fall 2008 Heirloom Bulb of the Year. 10-12”, zones 5-8aS/10WC, from Holland. Chart to compare.

Ineffably soft, baby-chick yellow, ‘City of Haarlem’ makes every hyacinth rainbow lovelier. Named for the bulb district’s grandest city, ‘Haarlem’ has been a favorite for well over a century now. 10-12”, zones 5-8aS/10WC, from Holland. Chart to compare.

Perhaps the rarest and most exciting hyacinth we’ve ever offered, this very double, pale yellow relic was preserved by a small botanic garden in Lithuania. Although its name was lost ages ago, it looks a lot like ‘Ophir’ pictured in Robert Sweet’s The Florist’s Guide and Cultivator’s Directory of 1827-32, and it’s tall and late-blooming as ‘Ophir’ was. “I can’t be 100% certain,” Alan Shipp of the British National Collection of Hyacinths told us, “but as yellow hyacinths didn’t appear until about 1770, and there were never more than a few double yellows at any time in history, chances are this really is ‘Ophir’.” Whatever its name, it’s the only double yellow hyacinth available anywhere in the world today, and we’re thrilled to have a very few to offer you! 11-12”, zones 5-8aS/10WC, from England. Chart to compare. Last offered web-only in 2012. Although we hope to offer this rarity again in 2013, availability can’t be confirmed until June. Please check back then or subscribe to our email newsletter.

With long outer petals that swoop back and curl like those of a turk’s-cap lily, and shorter inner petals crimped into a squiggly rosette, this is one of the most interesting — and rarest — of the Victorian doubles. 10-12”, zones 5-8aS/10WC, from the British National Collection. Chart to compare.

With big, opulent bells of soft blue and lavender that look like they’ve been sculpted out of Bavarian sugar-frosting, this rare jewel is the oldest surviving double hyacinth of all. 10-12”, zones 5-8aS/10WC, from Holland. Chart to compare.