Small, common and not really that exciting but we all love snowdrops

WE all love snowdrops as they signal our emergence from the gloomy grip of winter. What a joy to see our woody banks and blowsy grassland alive with a host of nodding little blooms.

Modest little snowdrops, Galanthus nivalis, are so important to us that thousands of people visit the gardens and parks taking part in our National Snowdrop Festival every year. Sadly at the time of writing, it looks as if the festival will be a victim of the completely understandable restrictions that we all want to follow. So we’ll have to hold our private little festivals in the garden or while out for a walk in the park.

But let’s be honest, if it wasn’t January or February, we wouldn’t give these pretty nondescript wee souls a second glance. That’s a mistake. Like every plant, snowdrops become fascinating and full of interest when you look more closely and appreciate how they function.

Plants must always adapt to their surroundings and will only survive by developing strategies to cope with weather, soil and nearby competitors. They must fight off marauding pests, diseases and herbivores.

Snowdrops don’t have an easy meal ticket. The weather is cold, harsh, wet and often snowy.

The sun is low in the sky, providing little light and energy for plants to grow and vital pollinators are few and far between that early in the year. So how do they manage?

Snowdrops are tough and have strong enough leaves to push through hard frozen or snowy ground. The arrangement of leaves differs between species. Pairs of leaves are either pressed flat against each other or one is clasped tightly round the other for extra strength. The flower lies in the middle, with the extra

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in the centre and then have a doughnut-shaped short bit that I mow and they run around that.” Leaving the grass long provides space for the caterpillars of grass feeders like the speckled wood butterfly, meadow brown and gatekeeper.

2. GO NATIVE

“Get as many native plants which grow wild into your garden as you can,” says Hoare. “We have lists on our website (butterfly-conservation. org) you can choose from, but typical plants include bird’s-foottrefoil, yarrow, clovers, trees and shrubs which are good nectar sources, such as willow and ivy, and blackthorn in your hedge, instead of leylandii or laurel.”

3. DON’T USE PESTICIDES

“Pretty obviously, pesticides are designed to kill insects,” he warns. “We are putting toxic chemicals all over our gardens, where we’re sitting having a picnic or playing with our kids. In most cases they’re just not needed.

“If you have a healthy ecosystem of insects visiting your garden it should keep the balance of nature going.”

4. TURN YOUR GARDEN LIGHTS OFF

“Light pollution is a huge problem for a whole range of wildlife including moths, bats and birds. There has been a huge proliferation in LED lights and solar lights which charge up in the day and stay on all night, when you’re not actually using the garden.

“By all means, use lights when you are sitting outside having an evening meal, but turn them off when you come inside. Solar lighting needs to have an off switch. Lighting at night disrupts the natural life cycles and rhythms of huge numbers of wildlife. Some butterflies migrate at night but it has more of an impact on moths.”

5. SHARE YOUR EFFORTS WITH NEIGHBOURS

“Explain to your neighbours that you’re not neglecting your lawn, you’re rewilding it. I put a little sign on my front gate to explain what we’re doing. I have kids so we painted a sign with bug pictures on it.”

6. LOOK BEYOND YOUR GARDEN GATE

“Talk to your council about the way they are mowing their road verges, or talk to your neighbours to scale up. If you find what you’re doing in your garden is working, spread the message.”

A carpet of snowdrops