Fritillaria imperialis and persica help
penstemon (Fri, 06 Jun 2014 16:03:16 PDT)

This is absolutely not true. Fritillaria bulbs are true bulbs and are
not annually renewed.

Not everyone agrees.

I quote (Ian Young):

"Classic bulbs such as Narcissus are perennial adding extra layers each
year all fritillaria bulbs are annuals, replacing themselves completely
each year with a new one that forms at the base of the growing stem."

I wonder if it depends on the species.
In the interests of furthering human knowledge, I dug up one of the
imperialis bulbs.

http://s1265.photobucket.com/user/paridevita/…
http://s1265.photobucket.com/user/paridevita/…

It looks to me like this is a new bulb.
There are some Californian frits in the garden here (F. purdyi, F. biflora),
but their exact location is now unknown (the labels were destroyed by hail).
I could dig them up next year, maybe.

Bob Nold
Denver, Colorado, USA
z6