The following account is based on a lecture-demonstration given by Kath Dryden at a meeting of The Fritillaria Group held at the RHS Gardens, Wisley on 1st October 2000.

Composts

Kath emphasised the need for adequate humus and grit to ensure moisture retention and good drainage together with Perlite to ensure adequate aeration. The basic ingredients are: good quality John Innes no.3 compost, 5-6mm quartzite grit, soil less compost or moss peat and coarse Perlite in the proportions 1 : 1 : 1 : 0.5. The same compost is used for all bulbs, including woodland plants, though for the latter extra humus can be added if desired.(1)

Potting & Subsequent Treatment

Kath's cultivation is based almost exclusively on pots. In her experience, bulb frame cultivation does not give good results with most fritillaries (see also the Panel Discussion in Newsletter no. 6)

In her demonstration Kath used plastic pots (though in the subsequent discussion she expressed a personal preference for clay). Pots are not crocked and, in the case of plastic are stood on damp sand; clay pots are plunged. The majority of plants are grown in long toms of a size appropriate to the number of bulbs. The exceptions are stoloniferous plants such as the various forms of F. camschatcensis which are grown in pots with a relatively high width to depth ratio. Bulbs are placed on a layer of sharp horticultural sand and the majority seem to grow better when fairly crowded in the pot . Following potting they are watered with a fungicide.

Plants are not repotted every year but are given one or two feeds of a high potash liquid fertiliser (such as Tomorite) as the leaves begin to yellow.

During dormancy European and Mediterranean plants are given a modicum of water if the weather is very hot. American frits are kept under the staging of the alpine house whilst those from Central Asia are allowed to become dry.

Propagation and Rescue Operations

Seeds are sown thinly in the same compost as that used for potting; if one wishes seeds can be sown on edge but this is probably unnecessary. The seeds are covered with a layer of fine grit such as chicken grit and the pots are placed in a shaded spot such as under a north wall. Following germination pots are placed under glass and kept growing as long as possible. Seedlings are allowed to remain in the same pots for two years when they are potted on without disturbance. Then in two more years they are potted on, again without disturbance. During these four years the bulbs are fed little and often with a high nitrogen feed. This procedure will not hasten flowering but by the fifth year one has bulbs large enough to handle. Flowering size bulbs can still be quite small but a good sign that flowering is imminent is a doubling in size of the leaves and the opening-up of the top of the bulb to reveal the embryonic flower bud.

Kath also gave an outline and demonstration of bulb scaling. Many members have probably read about the procedure - it is said that one simply snaps the bulb in two - and probably nearly as many have got cold feet when contemplating the selected victim. The important point is that each piece must have a piece of the basal plate attached and this is best achieved by lightly cutting the base with a sterile scalpel before attempting to break the bulb into two. The procedure should be carried out in June or July and following breakage the pieces are potted in sharp sand which is kept dry or damp (depending on the provenance of the plant) over the summer. Bulbs are subsequently potted as normal in September. One half will probably flower next Spring whilst the other half will have made a decent sized bulb.

Bulbs which have partially rotted can sometimes be rescued. The procedure is to cut away all the rot with a sterile scalpel and subsequently to paint the cut surface with surgical spirit or methylated spirits. Then pot as normal.

Kath stated that her talk was intended for beginners and it would be difficult to conceive of a better or clearer introduction to the basics of cultivation. But she also emphasised that one has to learn how to manage one's own compost under one's own conditions. In the final analysis, there is no substitute for experience.

Note

(1) In her demonstration Kath employed some ingredients which are available in the United Kingdom as horticultural trade products. Thus, the brand of John Innes she recommends is "Green Ore" and the soil less compost is Fison's M3. These, together with Super-Coarse Perlite, can be obtained by amateurs from Avon Crop Ltd. which has trade counters at Boston, Lincs. & Bracknell, Berks. Otherwise, one has to search for a good quality John Innes and substitute moss peat for the soil less compost.

Gerry Webster