>Curiously, price in no guide in this matter. I have yet to figure out how to >grow Fritillaria imperialis here: almost without exception, newly purchased >bulbs perform spectacularly the first year and then, again almost without >exception, rot the first summer. >Fritillaria persica seems a bit more tolerant. But when I read that Jim >Waddick has F. persica coming back and blooming sometimes, I really >perked up: I've never been able to establish it here as a garden >plant. Like Jim Mc, I really shouldn't add fire to the frustration of this genus. Planting F. imperialis is like planting a $5 bill. Rarely does anything emerge or bloom and if straggles up, it soon dwindles. A gauntlet I keep taking up and loosing. I planted 5 F. persica about 5 years ago (maybe 6) Here's a review of their performance. Site 1 3 bulbs each about 2 ft apart. Full sun on a slope. All bloomed the first year, then they started to clump up in future years. Bulb 1 Last year no bloom 8 or 10 stems This year 11 flowering stem (!), 3 non flowering Bulb 2 Last half dozen stems no bloom This year it is totally gone! Bulb 3 Last year multiple stems and no bloom This year 8 stems no bloom Site 2 has 1 bulb from another source and it has had a single blooming stem each year including this one. Site 3 in light shade (facing west) Did not bloom last year and has 2 blooming stems and 3 non-blooming this year. Do you detect a pattern? Me neither except sometime they do, and sometimes they don't/ Appreciate any suggestions. Incidentally I do grow a few others I mentioned briefly. F. acmopetala twines up a Daphne and blooms every year. I am not fond of the flowers, the the odd broad oval juvenile leaves on bulblets are intriguing against the long skinny mature foliage. F. pontica persists and blooms each year. F. uva-vulpis same F. pallidiflora blooms regularly and look healthy, but doesn't seem to multiply. One stem this year had a a single terminal flower which open broad crusty thin petals, not at all bell shaped as typical. I suppose it is frost damage. And the new F/ pudica had its first bloom and has small bulbet foliage forming at the base. I suppose I'll throw some more money in the ground with F. imperialis one of these days and an 'Ivory Bells', but only because of the addiction. Best Jim W. -- Dr. James W. Waddick 8871 NW Brostrom Rd. Kansas City Missouri 64152-2711 USA Ph. 816-746-1949 Zone 5 Record low -23F Summer 100F +