Stunning snowdrops
Plant a drift of these dainty beauties that herald the new growing season
One of the greatest pleasures of the gardening year is spending a sunlit February day in the garden looking at snowdrops.
Days like these may be few and far between, but that makes them even more special – the wind has dropped, birds are singing and you might spot the first bee gathering pollen and nectar from crocus or winter aconites, both of which are perfect companion plants for the humble snowdrop. Of course February often brings snow, frost and rain, yet snowdrops always come through whatever the weather throws at them. They’re probably the hardiest of all bulbs and recover, amazingly, from being frozen solid. It’s a wondrous sight to watch the flower stems, like coiled springs, pop up back to life after lying flat on the ground all night once the sun begins to warm them. Plant them in drifts and you can enjoy the spectacle from the kitchen window, but on a good day, remember to leave the washing-up and appreciate the true beauty of these amazing flowers close up.
Planting snowdrops
If you’ve tried planting snowdrops as dry bulbs in autumn like tulips, you’ll almost certainly have failed. Their bulbs are naturally small and shrivel more easily than those of daffodils and tulips, and, unlike most other bulbs, they don’t like being out of the ground for long or exposed to the air. For the best chance of success, you need to plant growing bulbs – known as ‘in the green’. You can buy pot-grown bulbs from a good garden centre or nursery, or mail order ‘in the green bulbs’ for immediate planting from a specialist snowdrop supplier. Alternatively, ask a gardening friend if you can help lift and split a mature clump.
Lift them on a mild day with a fork (never use a spade in case your aim’s wrong!) and carefully tease clumps apart. A good-sized clump may contain up to 100 bulbs. Split into small bunches of three to six bulbs, replant immediately and water in. More snowdrops are lost to drying out than almost anything else, especially if the weather turns cold with a bitter, drying east wind. Shade is better than full sun and avoid planting in lawns or thick coarse grass because snowdrops can’t compete with lawnmowers or strimmers!
Rise in popularity For mass effect, nothing is more lovely or easier than common snowdrop, Galanthus
nivalis AGM. This increases freely and should be readily available in spring, as is its double form, G. nivalis plenif lorus AGM. This has very double, uneven flowers, and, being sterile, lasts longer in f lower than the single form. Most people find it’s more vigorous, soon making wide, fat clumps. These are the two most often seen in churchyards, estates, driveways and on wooded banks, and it wasn’t until the 19th century that other species, mainly from Turkey, started to appear. The trickle of new snowdrops grew as the century went on and, by 1891, so much interest had been kindled that the world’s first snowdrop conference took place in London. After another 100 years, snowdrops and ‘snowdrop fever’ has returned, making it a cult plant among collectors, known as galanthophiles – from the Latin, galanthus, meaning white or milk flower.
Some of the best
l ‘S.Arnott’ AGM always tops the most desirable snowdrop list. It hails from Scotland and can be seen growing in huge clumps at Colesbourne Park in Gloucestershire and Evenley Wood in Northamptonshire, where thousands of snowywhite, scented blooms create a truly floral wonderland for most of February. Height and spread: 10cm (4in).
l ‘Atkinsii’ AGM is over 30cm (1ft) high, and starts flowering in mid-January, in a warm garden. It has long, pointed petals, sometimes with an irregular or extra one, which adds to its charm. H: 25cm (10in), S: 10cm (4in).
l G. nivalis ‘Viridapice’
AGM literally means green tipped. Most snowdrops have three outer pure white petals and three inner petals, which usually show a green inverted v-shaped mark at their tip, but unusual snowdrops with extra green on the petals are now all the rage. Some are almost completely green, and fanatics pay hundreds of pounds for an extremely rare single bulb. However, for extra green without the extra cost, ‘Viridapice’ is one of the best and easiest, with distinctive bold, dark green-marked outer petals. Found in Holland almost 100 years ago, it’s still going strong and only costs a few pounds! Height and spread: 15cm (6in).
l G. nivalis pleniflorus ‘Blewbury
Tart’ offers lots of green together with a double flower. These long-lasting, upward-facing blooms look like little green tartlets among the leaves and this variety increases well. I found it in Blewbury, Oxfordshire, in the early 1970s and it now flourishes as far away as the USA, Sweden and Japan. Height and spread: 10cm (4in).
l G. plicatus ‘Wendy’s Gold’ is marked with yellow instead of green. Yellow-flowered snowdrops are perhaps the most sought-after and one or two bulbs might cost around £20. Height and spread: S: 15cm (6in).