Fritillaria meleagris

SNAKE’S HEAD FRITILLARY

Fritillaria meleagris
SNAKE’S HEAD FRITILLARY

Amazing chequer board patterns on nodding bells during spring, make Fritillaria meleagris a much loved treasure.

Nodding bells with amazing chequer-board pattern

And it is also a charming, hardy bulb, that is so easy to grow in the right spot.

Charming bulb with no mess

Slender, un-messy foliage is also a plus. Because it dies away after the spring blooming with barely a whimper and leaving no mess.

Under trees & shrubs

Plant Fritillaria meleagris in Part Shade or Dappled Sun.
So it suits perfectly when planted under trees & shrubs in a humous rich soil with plenty of old leaf litter.

No need to dig & divide – leave them to make a colony

Then you can leave the bulbs for years. With no need to dig and replant.
When they are in a happy place, arresting Snake’s Head Fritillary will self-seed for you. So you have an ever increasing little colony of these unusual charmers.

Fritillaria meleagris is a frost hardy bulb.
40cm High in delightfully chequered flowers x 10cm Wide of slender, fine, reed-like foliage.

SEED SOWING ADVICE:

Sow seeds of Fritillaria meleagris in a punnet indoors during autumn/winter/spring / OR scatter in garden winter-early spring.
Because these seeds need a period of cold chilling to break their natural dormancy and germinate.

Indoors for early & quick plants: Sow the seeds in a punnet on the surface of good quality seed raising mix.
Then gently pat the seeds to the surface of the mix to ensure good contact.
Now barely cover seeds with mix/grit/sand.

And thoroughly moisten the punnet by standing it in a shallow water bath and allowing the moisture to percolate up to the surface of the mix from below.

Then cling wrap the moist, sown punnet and place in the fridge (not freezer) for 4-6 weeks.
After the period of chilling, then remove and unwrap the punnet and place in an unheated, cool, light place.
Most seedlings should emerge in 30 days.
But do not discard too quickly. Because it is a natural safety device for this plant to stagger the seed germination. So some seeds may come later than the others.

Seed Count: 35 seeds per pack approx.
(We always aim to exceed the stated seed count, and give a generous serve).

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