Tuesday 27 January 2009

Snowdrops

Every garden should have snowdrops as they always seem to me to herald the end of winter which isn’t strictly true as they start to bloom with me soon after Christmas.

They are well worth the initial investment as they will grow anywhere in sun or shade, increase quite quickly, never fail to bloom, and flower over a long period. Clumps of them look as well in woodland conditions as they do in cultivation under planting shrubs or trees.


There are so many varieties to choose from these days. In the past most of them would have been European species such as Galanthus nivalis, Galanthus plicatus or cultivars of the same, but now there are varieties from many countries including hybrids.





In fact on reading a recently published book on snowdrops they mention at least 500 cultivars, so like many other plants they are of interest to collectors who will pay a great deal per bulb. They are best planted in the green when they have finished flowering as when the bulbs dry out and are sold in the Autumn they often fail to establish.


Personally, I find the quickest way to increase them is to sow the seed so when dividing them wait until the seed capsule has formed. When replanting them if possible plant in rich moisture retaining soil but they will grow anywhere.

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