Jane wrote: "In the border many Fritillaria meleagris are up far enough to be raising their opening flowers; you will see that many Fritillaria species keep their stems bent over near ground level until on the point of opening, " The first time I noticed this with Fritillaria meleagris in my garden I thought "So that's why it's sometimes called snake's head fritillary". The almost fully developed and chequered bud, when seen down almost on the ground, does have an ophidian quality to it. J`im McKenneyMontgomery County, Maryland, USA, USDA zone 7, where the first reticulate irises have joined the party today. _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.ibiblio.org http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/