7 Persian lily

FRITILLARIA PERSICA, ZONES 4 TO 8

Persian lilies provide architectural intensity to a spring garden, with 20 to 30 dark plum, bell-shaped blooms lining up in alternating rows on slender stalks.

Though around since 1573, this Why we love it: perennial is still not widely planted. The blue-gray deer-resistant foliage alone makes it worth a shot.

Many of these flowers come in an array of colors. For example,