A first glimpse of spring

Their green shoots and delicate flowers announce new life, so it’s no surprise that gardeners love to see the first snowdrops

SNOWDROPS are usually the first sign of spring, although in some parts of the South and South West they may have already been appearing for a few weeks.

Each apparently fragile bloom is equipped with a warhead that can pierce frozen snow.

The construction of a snowdrop bud and the hardened tips to its leaves enable it to emerge in the most unfavourable conditions. Snow piercer is its other common name.

So anticipated are snowdrops that they have their own bunch of enthusiasts – the galanthophiles – named after the plant’s botanical handle Galanthus, from the Greek ‘gala’ meaning milk and ‘anthus’ meaning flower.

Now, one snowdrop may look much like another to you but there are hundreds of varieties with minute differences in form and colour.

They are all white, but with various markings that may be yellow or green, and flowers that are single or double, large or small.

Enthusiasts bitten by the bug will pay £30 or more per bulb – but for those happy with the plain Galanthus nivalis in its single and double forms, there is no need to spend a fortune.

And now’s the time to buy them. Snowdrop bulbs are sensitive to drying out and, while dry bulbs can be planted in the autumn with a fair degree of success, those that have been badly stored and are desiccated are unlikely to emerge.

Snowdrops bought ‘in the green’ will have no such problem and can be planted secure in the knowledge that they will come up next year. I plant mine 3in deep and the same distance apart under fruit trees, where they look very much at home.

I grow the few special varieties I own in terracotta pots, where they are clearly labelled.

But to be honest, snowdrops are happiest planted in the garden. Provided the soil they grow in is reasonably well drained – not soggy – they will multiply year-on-year, increasing the size of your colony.

Enjoy the singles or the doubles – both are reliable. So if your garden lacks these spring heralds, plant them now to be sure of a bright future, year after year.

DOUBLE DELIGHT: Galanthus nivalis ‘Flore Pleno’ and, right, a clump of pure white snowdrops in an English garden in February. Below, a woodland floor carpeted with delicate snowdrops

Out of the ground SNOW PIERCER: Icy conditions won’t stop these little gems from bursting

VARIETY: Although all snowdrops are white many have subtle difference such as extra touches of colour

GET PLANTING: Now is the time to get bulbs in the ground

SET TO SPRING: Budding snowdrops