Blooms for several weeks, and will spread in a damp—but not wet—location. Prefers heavy soil and bright light, but not direct sun. Plant bulbs promptly lest they dry out. Species is native from Ireland to the Caucasus; Gravetye Manor was the home and laboratory of William Robinson, 19th-century botanist and author of The Wild Garden.
18–36" tall. Mid to Late Spring blooms, Z4-9. 12-13cm bulbs.
The Royal General Bulbgrowers Association in Holland (Koninklijke Algemeene Vereeniging voor Bloembollencultuur, or KAVB) puts this large group of diverse flowers into a boring catch-all category: Miscellaneous Bulbs. The expensive catalogs call them specialty or accent bulbs; some call them minor or dwarf bulbs (even though some of the fritillaries are huge!); Louise Beebe Wilder covered most of them in her 1936 classic Adventures with Hardy Bulbs. Whatever you call them, most are uncommonly sweet, delicate, colorful, and completely welcome in spring.