My favourite Fritillaria is the Checkered Lily, (Fritillaria megaleris), a smaller, more delicate plant that grows to 10 inches tall with single, bell-shaped, nodding , purple, pinkish-purple or white flowers in April to May. These bulbs also need full sun to partial shade, and naturalize well; they do, however, prefer moist locations and don't like to be disturbed after they've been planted. I like to use these to underplant trees and shrubs; they're also great in borders or rock gardens.
For More Information
These are only some of the spring-flowering bulbs you can plant that will look great and deter deer. For general information on planting spring bulbs, you may want to visit http://www.uwex.edu/disted/infosrce/454.... ("Planting Spring-Flowering Bulbs" by Myers) or http://www.whitneyfarm.com/garden/news/b... ("The Lazy Gardener: on Naturalizing Spring Bulbs"). Planting crocuses and tulips is a waste of time and money where the deer roam free, but you can still have a magnificent display of spring flowers, if you plant the right bulbs in the fall.
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