Jane McGary janemcgary@earthlink.net wrote regarding the mystery frit: >I would have to see the inside of the >flower for details, but my immediate >reaction was that this is a photo of >Fritillaria crassifolia subsp. kurdica. >However, F. graeca is extremely variable I'm no frit expert, although I do enjoy growing a few species. As an aid to the discussion about a possibly ID on the mystery frit, I added a photo on the PBS Fritillaria page of Fritillaria crassifolia ssp. kurdica, grown from bulbs from Jane McGary. It's a sweetheart of a little frit. To my eye, it does not look like a match for the mystery frit. http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/index.php/… I also added two other frit pictures. The first is F. bythinica. Mary Sue already posted some nice closeups of the flower showing the interior and exterior coloration of the flower; my shot was taken outside where the plant grows under a deciduous shrub. I had no idea the plant was so tiny, so it looks rather dwarfed by everything located around it. Many shoots from young F. pudica bulbs show in the background (bargain-sized small bulbs from Jane McGary). The second photo shows a young first blossom on putative F. wabuensis, grown from bulbs shipped from Chen Yi, in China. It's another tiny frit, with flowers that are virtually black or blackish-red, with a blue-black sheen. Mark McDonough Pepperell, Massachusetts, United States antennaria@aol.com "New England" USDA Zone 5 ============================================== >> web site under construction - http://www.plantbuzz.com/ << alliums, bulbs, penstemons, hardy hibiscus, western american alpines, iris, plants of all types!