Fritillaria meleagris

Love how they get darker as they age 😍

These really are pretty! How tall do they get? Maybe we should give these another try🤔

@gjones they last for ages too and just get better 😍 these are about 25cm, quite sturdy also. Definitely worth another try 😉

I risked it and sniffed mine. Didn't smell of anything 😁

@ublaszko I forgot to check but now you have I don’t need to take the risk 😌😂

It's a real beauty & such a rich deep colour too 😍

@jeatacake thank you Jeff ☺️

Love these 😊 @kez001uk

Very welcome 👍

@vinny3000 thank you Gary 😊 they’re so striking aren’t they 😍

They are beautiful Kerry and one of my Spring favourites 😊 @kez001uk

Lovely grouping!

@gjones and the only one 🤣 the others are few and far between 😜

One of my favourite bulbs. I usually fall in love with new bulbs and then the next year they're a history but these fritillarias amaze me every year 😍😍😍

@ublaszko I couldn’t understand the fuss really. But then mine opened and seeing how beautiful they are up close, can’t help but love them. Almost as much as the neighbour cat loves the bulbs 😉

They're quite understated but very dainty and wildflower-like. I enjoy them immensely. Tulips on the other hand I couldn't care less 😁

@ublaszko speaking of tulips, any sign of yours opening yet?

I had a look at my purple/white tulip mix and only half of the bulbs have flowerbuds. I pulled the blank ones out to make space for something else. Another variety also only has half of flowerbuds. Not impressed. Still not flowering but my rhododendron is about to flower. 👍 @kez001uk

@ublaszko such a shame but good thing you’re not too fussed about tulips 😛 still would be nice for some to flower though 🤞🏻 oh that’s early isn’t it! My dwarf one is in bloom-ish but the proper one looks ages away

Yeah, I have a dwarf rhodo too. I think it will start to flower when I'm in Poland next week 😁 Tulips are at least 2 weeks away. Very slow to flower this year. Last year they were in flower from mid April to mid May. I'm convinced I ended up with dodgy bulbs last autumn. They will still be pretty the ones that actually flower.

@ublaszko you’re going so soon! Bet you can’t wait to get back home to see your family ☺️ what colour is your dwarf rhododendron? Those tulips are really keeping you waiting!

I haven't seen my family in 2 years because of the PhD and after speaking to my mum this week I bought the tickets for next week 😀 My rhodo is white although the flowers open from pink buds. Oh, I spotted my first tulip colouring up today so it might flower before I leave. Also, my camellia flower is also showing the slightest bit of colour on the tip of the flowerbud 😄 @kez001uk

@ublaszko that’s a long time to not see them ☹️ I hope you have a lovely time back home 😁 woooo! Tulips and camellia are finally doing what they should 😛 hope you get a show before you leave 🤞🏻

These are so lovely! ❤️

@natii they’re beautiful aren’t they 😍

Absolutely! 😊

They really are attractive. We tried growing some of these a few years ago along with a few other varieties of fritillaria. The only variety to survive our winter was the michailovskyi . At least one variety made it😊

@gjones that’s such a shame 🙁 I guess because they’re early flowering the snow stops them growing through? That variety is gorgeous, it’s great they overwintered 😁

Mine just didn't survive our terribly wet winter. 😐

@lesliecole49 sorry to hear that Leslie ☹️ one benefit of me being a container gardener is less chance of bulbs sitting in waterlogged soil. They seem to do well in pots 😁

Awww a finger hat how cool 🙂

Watch out for those teeth Kerry!

That's such a great close up 😊❤

@scaryskates 🤣 cheers Gary 😛 just needs some googly eyes 😉👀

@jeatacake vicious little things aren’t they 🤣

Wow! That's an amazing shot Kerry!💘😍

@ShelleySnyder thank you Shelley ☺️ was just intrigued what they looked like up the right way 😂

Welcome! Love the checkerboard!💘😍

@ShelleySnyder they’re fascinating looking flowers aren’t they 🐍

They are Kerry!💘😍

Interesting how the checkered pattern is more intense (deeper colour) on the inside😊

@gjones it’s much more vibrant isn’t it. Just a shame they hang down so you never see the inside

One have been out for weeks this year. Such a good buy 😍👏

@suerichards think mine are way behind, even though these photos are from last week. Built up a backlog 🤣 could fill a garden with these and never get bored of looking at them. Although I need some white ones like yours 😋

Ah so you have some if these too. Looking good & ready to bite someone! 😀

@jeatacake not as many as I’d like and they’re way behind but well worth the wait 😍

Same principle as the bleeding hearts 😉👍

@jeatacake seems to be the same with most of my plants 😂

Soon we'll all be jealous when ours have finished flowering 😁👍

Mine are about to flower too 😊

@ublaszko our plants are in sync for once 😆 they’re such gorgeous flowers aren’t they

I like them very much! I need to plant more in autumn as the neighbour's cat dug them out again this winter. Seems he likes to do a wee around them because they were mulched and the ground underneath was nice and soft 😁😁😁

@ublaszko been seeing the white ones a lot, they’re beautiful 😍 oh no, that’s a shame ☹️ is it the one that tries to pinch pudgy’s food?

Yep, the same one. He's a rascal but too cute to be mad at 😁 I used to have some white ones too but he dug them up the year before last ones.

@ublaszko he really has a thing for your snake’s heads 🤣🤣🤣

Oh, guess what! I read on on one website that fritillaria meleagris smell like cat pee so it would make sense why the neighbour's cat came to pee on them. Why don't you give your fritillarias a whiff and let me know? 😉😂😂

@ublaszko oh no, not more cat piddle smells 😜 makes sense why boy cat liked them so much 😂 I’ll brave a sniff tomorrow and let you know 😅

😂 I'd sniff mine but he's already peed on them 😅 Perhaps he think it's another cat and he's trying to claim his territory. 😂

@ublaszko 😆 he’s definitely laid claim to them now 😜

😂😂😂