The aim of the blog is to share our knowledge of what to plant, what is flowering and what you should be doing to prepare for the next planting season!
Learn about Fritillarias
The two most common types of fritillaria that we all know are the fritillaria meleagris (commonly known as the snakeshead lily) and the large crown imperials such as Fritillaria Rubra. There are in fact over 120 varieties in the national collection although many of these are either quite rare and thus expensive or not suitable for garden growing. We offer a number of varieties that are of course suitable for the garden or container planting.
Cultivation
Fritillaries like to be planted in well-drained, humus rich soil and left undisturbed for a number of years. Cultivate the soil prior to planting to a depth of 12” (30cms) and dig in some grit and or organic matter to help with drainage and humus content. As the bulbs of fritillarias vary in size from the large imperial bulbs to the smaller specie varieties we suggest you follow the planting instructions for the relevant varieties, although our rule of thumb is plant the bulbs at 3 times the depth of the bulb. When looking for a place to plant fritillarias they prefer being planted in the cooler parts of gardens where the flowers are not in the direct sunshine and the bulbs stay in moist soil that is not waterlogged in winter or dry out in summer. They are ideal for planting among herbaceous plants or low shrubs. Fritillaria meleagris is ideal for naturalising and can be planted in meadow like areas as long as these areas do not dry out in the summer.
Flowering
During flowering top dress in the early spring with some well rotted compost. If planted deep enough the flowers will not need stacking. Flowers that are not in direct sunlight will flower for longer and is preferred by the fritillaries. During flowering ensure the soil does not dry out and feed every two weeks with bone meal or tomato food that has been dissolved in water. Once flowering has finished allow stems to die back and remove debris.
Fritillaria in containers
Fritillarias especially the larger crown imperialis types work well in containers. Ensure that you provide them with plenty of drainage and that the container is large enough so that it does not topple over when the bulbs are flowering.
Over wintering
Cover with a good mulch of compost and leave over winter. Bulbs can be left undisturbed for many years. If you do need to dig them up wait until they have flowered and the stem has died, back (May/June), dig up and plant in the new spot. If you cannot do that at the time place the bulb (with an amount of soil around it) in a pot or container so that the bulb does not dry out and plant when possible but no later than November, again remember to mulch well.
Tips
Fritillarias are best purchased when they are first available from retailers such as garden centres around early September as the bulbs are quite fleshy and can suffer from drying out. Alternatively buy from mail order or web based companies such as ourselves who store them in ideal conditions before sending to you.
Plant the larger crown imperial varieties on their side. When looking at the bulb you will see a hole or hollow in the top of the bulb (this is were last years flower came from) ensure that by turning the bulb on its side this hole slightly faces downwards so that water does not accumulate and rot the bulb.
