Trick when buying flowers: How to easily recognize fresh tulips. Some cut flowers drop their heads faster than expected.
You can often find out whether the tulips will last longer in the vase at home or not by doing a test when shopping. If it squeaks quietly when you gently rub the leaves and stems together, the tulip is freshly harvested. If tulips let their heads hang after you buy them, there's a trick to help: wrap the stems in old newspaper so that the ends of the stems are still exposed.