474 FRITILLARIA. THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. FRITILLARIA. 



lifted every three or four years and 

 planted in fresh soil. The lifting 

 should be done in autumn, and the 

 bulbs replanted without delay. 



F. AUREA. One of the prettiest of the 

 genus, quite hardy, about 5 inches high. 

 Has a stem of 4 to 6 inches thick, fleshy, 

 deep green leaves, with a nodding flower, 

 which is pale yellow spotted, or chequered 

 with brown. Silesia. Should be lifted and 

 rested each year for a short period. 



White Fritillary. 



F. BURNETI. A handsome hardy plant 

 about 9 inches high, with solitary drooping 

 blossoms, 2 inches long, which are of a 

 plum colour chequered with yellowish- 

 green. Alps. Flowers with the Snow- 

 drop, and is as easy to grow. 



F. IMPERIALIS (Crown Imperial). A 

 showy and stately plant, from 3 to 4 feet 

 high, with stout bright green shoots, 

 crested by large dense whorls of drooping 

 bell-like flowers and a crown of foliage. 

 There are several varieties, differing chiefly 

 in the colour of the flowers. The principal 

 are lutea (yellow), rubra (red), double red 

 and double yellow, rubra maxima (very 

 large red flowers), Aurora (bronzy orange), 

 sulphurine (large sulphur-yellow), Orange 

 Crown (orange-red). This plant thrives 

 best in a rich, deep loam, especially if the 

 bulbs remain undisturbed for years. Its 

 best place, perhaps, is in a group on the 

 fringe of the shrubbery or a group of 

 American plants. These are essentially 



garden plants, their strong odour being 

 against them when gathered. 



F. KARELINI. An interesting kind, 

 4 to 5 inches high, with two or three broad 

 leaves clasping its stem, and having a 

 terminal raceme of slightly drooping, bell- 

 like flowers. These flowers, about i inch 

 across, are of a pale purple, with darker 

 veins, a few darker spots, and a distinct 

 yellowish-green pit at the base of each 

 reflexed segment. Native of C. Asia, and, 

 flowering in late autumn or early winter, 

 is valuable for a collection of winter-flower- 

 ing outdoor plants. According to Dr 

 Regel, it must be kept in dry sand until 

 November, and should not grow or show 

 bloom before spring. If planted in 

 November, growth is retarded, and it 

 does not bloom in spring, which it ought 

 to do ; while those flowering in autumn 

 invariably dwindle away, and do not pro- 

 duce any new bulbs. It should be planted 

 in light soil in well-drained borders with 

 a warm exposure. 



F. LATIFOLIA. Variable as regards the 

 colour of the flowers, which are larger than 

 those of our native F. Meleagris, and are 

 borne on stems about i foot high, are 

 pendulous, and vary in colour through 

 various shades of purple, black, lilac, and 

 yellow. The principal named varieties 

 are Black Knight, Captain Marryat, 

 Caroline Chisholm, Cooper, Dandy, 

 Jerome, Maria Goldsmith, Marianne, Mel- 

 lina, Pharaoh, Rembrandt, Shakespeare, 

 Van Speyk, each representing a different 

 shade of colour. They grow freely in an 

 open situation in any soil, and are excellent 

 for naturalising. Caucasus. 



F. MELEAGRIS (Snake's-head). An ele- 

 gant native species, of which there are 

 numerous varieties. It is 9 to 18 inches 

 high, and in early summer bears a solitary 

 drooping flower, beautifully tessellated 

 with purple or purplish-maroon on a pale 

 ground. The chief varieties are the 

 white (alba], which has scarcely any dark 

 markings ; nigra, a deep purplish-black ; 

 pallida, light purple ; angustifolia, with 

 long narrow leaves ; major, with flowers 

 larger than the type ; prcecox, which 

 flowers about a week earlier than the 

 other forms ; flavida, yellowish ; and the 

 rare double variety. All forms of this 

 beautiful plant may be used with excellent 

 effect. It grows freely in grass not mown 

 early, and is therefore admirable for the 

 wild garden ; its various forms are among 

 the most beautiful inhabitants of the 

 hardy bulb garden, and tufts of the 

 chequered or white-flowered variety are 

 among the most graceful plants in cottage 

 gardens. 



F. MOGGRIDGEI (Golden Snake's-head). 

 A beautiful plant with pendulous blos- 

 soms, 2 inches long, which are of fine 

 golden-yellow, chequered with brownish- 

 crimson on the inner surface of the bell. 

 It may be seen on its native Alps, at an 



