Fritillary. Twenty-three species, besides varieties. Hardy bulbs. Offsets. Sandy soil.

"The season for planting or transplanting all these bulbs is when their flower-stalks are decayed, in July or beginning of August, though the bulbs taken up at that time may be kept, if necessary, by being laid in dry sand; but the fritillary (F. pyrenaica) and Persian lily (F. Persica) are rather more impatient, out of the earth, than the crown imperial (F. imperial is), and therefore should always be put in again as soon as possible.

Propagation Of All The Species

The general mode of propagation of all these plants is by offsets, which may be separated every second or third year. The proper time is when their flower-stalks decay, taking the whole cluster of roots out of the earth and separating them into distinct roots, planting the smaller offsets by themselves, in nursery-beds, to remain a year or two; and the larger roots plant where they are designed to remain.

They are also propagated by seed to gain new varieties. The process is tedious. The fritillary and Persian lily will be three years, and the crown imperial sometimes six or seven, before they flower in perfection.

The seeds are to be sown in boxes of light earth in August or September, covering them with earth a quarter of an inch deep. - Abercrombie.