Comprehensive evaluation and screening of tulip cultivars based on their ornamental value and reuse of bulbs.

We evaluated the ornamental value and bulb reproduction performance of the tulip cultivars exhibited at the Tulip Festival in Beijing. on the basis of ten characteristcs relevant to growth, flowering and reproduction. A comprehensive evaluation system of tulip cultivars was established by combining an AHP (analytic hierarchy process) and a grey correlation analysis. We first used the AHP to determine value of the weights of various factors scientifically. Then, the grey correlation analysis was carried out to construct a “standard cultivar” to which all tested cultivars were compared, analyzed and sorted. Given the degree of grey correlation, 17 cultivars with both high ornamental value and good bulb reproduction performance were screened from 58 tested cultivars. The results revealed that the approach of combining grey correlation analysis and the AHP can be used effectively to evaluate tulip cultivars from two aspects, i.e., fornamental characteristics and the ability of bulb reproduction, to screen cultivars suitable for both the Tulip Festival and the reuse of daughter bulbs in landscape. Our study provides references for the introduction of tulip bulbs and their use in landscape application.