To visit this weekend: Fritillaria meleagris meadows at Magdalen College, Oxford University, England
By Alex N •
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The original English name of these flowers is the Snake's Head fritillary, It has many local name variations such as Simple Fritillary, Checkered Daffodil, Frog-cup, Chess Flower, Guinea-hen Flower and Leper Lily,
The flowers are nodding, dainty, six petaled bells, hang from slender stems about 15 to 30cm in height. They range from white to various shades of purple and bear a unique, chequered patterning which is quite obvious on the purple flowers but more of a feint "water mark" on the white flowers.
Fritillaria meleagris flower from March to May from a small bulb, about 2 cm in diameter, commonly found growing in grasslands in damp soils and river meadows.
It is the only species of Fritillary native to Britain, but is now quite rare in the wild due to modern farming and land cultivation techniques.
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