Growing Fritillaria in Your Garden

Growing Fritillaria in your garden is looking like it may become something of a new obsession. Well, if I go on the number of garden design clients who have responded with “Ooh, can I have one of those?” when seeing photographs of these delightful flowers, it seems like it might be!

For example: Admiring the delicacy of a meadow filled with Snakes head fritillary and asking in a general way whether they have room for a wild flower meadow.

Cranborne Manor, © Visit Gardens

Or perhaps exclaiming “Wow!” at Fritillaria imperialis – and the Crown Imperial Fritillary is very “wow” – their next question is often: “Are they difficult to grow?“

Well, I’m happy to enlighten anyone who would like to know: Fritillaria, or some of them anyway, are easy to grow in a wide range of garden situations.
I’d like to thank some of my Garden Media Guild and Professional Garden Consultants Association friends for helping me out with photographs (full references at the end). Thanks to their generosity, I’m able to show you that you can grow Fritillaria in many different parts of Britain (ok, England, as it happens). The soil types differ, and we also have some varieties grown in pots.

Now, I would normally begin with a brief history and a bit of botany. But this time I’m putting history snippets after how to grow Fritillaria in your garden. The botany, however, is next…

A Bit of Botany

There are something like 130 different species, of the Fritillaria genus world wide. All of them belong to the larger Lily family, Liliaceae. So this is one of those times when a common name, for example, ‘Chequered Lily’ for Fritillaria meleagris, is a good and accurate description.

Fritillaria are bulbous perennials, flowering in the spring months, variously from late February to late May. Exact flowering time depends on whether they’re growing in the open or under protection, and which species they are.

Highclere © Visit Gardens

The bulbs themselves may look very similar to a lily bulb. They may have thin scales, known as tunics, covering the bulb; they may have bulbils attached. In other words, there is no one description to make your life easy!

More helpfully, the leaves will always be growing from the stem, never from the actual base of the plant. Fritillaria are herbaceous perennials, so the foliage dies back after flowering is finished.

The flowers contain both male (stamen) and female (carpel) parts. Among other terms, this is referred to as bisexual, and also as a perfect flower, meaning it doesn’t need a separate flower in order to reproduce. They do, however, need a pollinating insect to help; which could be wasps or bees.

Fritillaria have long been used medicinally to treat respiratory problems in China, India and Iran. The active ingredients is are steroids, which means that some bulbs (the part used) are also toxic.

Growing Fritillaria in Your Garden – 4 Easy Varieties

The map shows the distribution of ten Fritillary species, and we’re looking at numbers 1, 5 7 and 8. These four Fritillary are often grown in British gardens, usually successfully. A brief suggestion for getting the best from your Fritillaries is given with each one, as needs differ. However, they are all initially planted as bulbs in the autumn, or bought as ‘bulbs in the green’ in spring.
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Fritillaria meleagris

Also known as Snakes head Fritillary and Chequered Lily. Frequently seen growing in wild flower meadows, possibly near streams, Fritillaria meleagris is a very adaptable plant. It will grow both in full sun and light shade, on well-drained soil and in damp areas. Having said that, it tends to be happier with some shade in a soil that doesn’t totally dry out over the summer.

The shoots grow to about 12” tall and, as with most of the Fritillaria species, have nodding flowers. These are usually pale to mid purple, with the famous chequered markings, but a white flower appears sporadically among them.

Fritillaria persica

The Persian Fritillary likes things a bit hotter although it will tolerate partial shade. But Fritillaria persica does not like wet roots, so add plenty of grit and sand and coarse compost to the planting hole. When planting the bulb, lay it on its side to reduce the amount of water that can sit on the top of the bulb, which would cause it to rot.

The tall (2 – 3’) smokey purple flowers add a brooding exotic feel to your borders. They would look stunning rising out from surrounded silver leaved evergreen shrubs such as Santolina Chamaecyparissus. There is also a white flowered form of Fritillaria persica, with a greenish tinge that is also garden worthy.

Fritillaria michaelovskyi

Also known as Michael’s flower, is perhaps the least well-know of these four Fritillaries. In looks and size, its more like Fritillaria meleagris than the other two. Lightly scented bell-like flowers with an unusual colour combination of maroon-brown edged with yellow-green will make visitors ask what it is.

Happy in sun or partial shade, Fritillaria michaelovskyi prefers a relatively dry soil. Given its small size, this may encourage you to grow this in a pot or raised bed. The advantage then is that the light scent will be more discernible, being nearer to nose height. I have some in a small pot which sits on the patio table when in flower for full enjoyment.

Fritillaria imperalis

The Crown imperial Fritillary is definitely looks like a “diva” plant. Flower colour options are an orange, ranging from terracotta through to an overripe fruit and ‘you-thought-daffodils-were-yellow’. Also known as Kaiser’s crown, it is the crown-like effect of the whorl of flowers that gave rise to its Botanical Latin and common names. I love the extra tuft of leaves above the flowers, some say these look like a pineapple’s foliage; I feel its more of an imperial starburst…

Fritillaria imperialis ’Rubra’, © The3GrowBags

Like the Persian Fritillary, Fritillaria imperialis needs well-drained soil and for the bulb to be dry over winter. Plant the bulb 3- 4 times its depth on its side. Despite this, it is a robust plant and easy to grow in free draining soils or in large pots.

Fritillaria imperialis ‘lutea’ © Sally Wicks

If you’re growing in pots, Fritillaries will need watering and regular feeding throughout the growing season. Either a general purpose, or Potash based fertiliser are fine, fortnightly feeding from when shoots are definitely formed gives a good floral display.

Problems, Pests and Diseases

Unfortunately, growing Fritillaria in your garden is unlikely to be a pest free event. Slugs and snails like chomping at the foliage in particular. Lily beetles – bright red and sassy – will lay their eggs in the Fritillaries they don’t eat so that the youth can attack your later flowering lilies. See links below for suggestions for dealing with these garden pests.

Fritillary bulbs seem less prone to being dug up by squirrels than other bulbs. But if squirrels are a real problem, then covering overwinter may be advisable.

Fungal disease may occur in a wet spring, but to be honest, is not usually a problem. Wet winters and wet soil tend to be more of a threat to your Fritillaries. As a back-up plan for bulbs overwintering in a heavier clay soil, have some growing in a pot as well. You can cover the pot to keep the rain off, or keep it in a cool shed or greenhouse whilst dormant.

Fritillaria – A Few Historical Anecdotes

And now, for those of you who like to know these things, a few historical anecdotes…

The name Fritillary is from the Latin word fritillus meaning dice box. It refers to the checkerboard pattern on the petals of Fritillaria meleagris, which is the largest sub-genera.

Fritillaria meleagris was once a common site in meadows, and is been considered by many to be a British native species. This is unlikely, although it is a European native, as there seems to be no record of it prior to the sixteenth century. Then we have Shakespeare mention it in his plays, and it appears in John Gerard’s Herbal. It was still uncommon as a garden plant, but this and other Fritillaries began to appear in European Botanical Gardens as more exotic specimens were brought from Persia, Turkey and the Far East.

Fritillaries are found in temperate areas, both in Europe and Asia and in North America. In this latter, Fritillaria pudica, also known as Yellow Fritillary, and Rice root, was eaten by indigenous populations. The bulb, of course, is a storage organ for starch to feed the flower the following spring. As such it is a useful winter foodstuff.

The Mughal emperors, 1526 – 1720, were, perhaps unsurprisingly, very fond of Fritillaria imperialis. It appears in many wall paintings, including in the Taj Mahal. And further thanks to Laura for reminding me that the Crown imperial is supposed to flower at Easter and be lowering its head, weeping at the Crucifixion. (Beads of nectar can be seen if you tip the flowers up) The flower is also known as Tears of Mary, for this reason, and is especially topical as this blog goes out on Easter weekend.

Do You Fancy Growing Fritillaria in Your Garden?

If you fancy growing Fritillaria in your garden or would like to extend the varieties you already grow, let me point you in the direction of the Fritillaria Group (UK based). They are a specialist group within the British Alpine Garden Society and have a gallery of tempting Fritillaries.

If you have a cool, unheated greenhouse, or are prepared to provide a glass roof to keep the rain off, growing a wide variety of Fritillaries is possible. And here’s a photo of a different looking Fritillary, Fritillaria gibbosa, to tempt you…

As for me, I’m working on a little book on Fritillaria, aimed towards those who would like to grow it among their other garden plants. Initially it will be an eBook available from the website and Amazon, and include more photos by my friends below. I’ll keep you posted…And if you’d like a Garden Design or Planting Design so as to have some delicious Fritillaries in your garden, do get in touch – we’re offering Design Visits by Video during the Covid-19 crisis