‘Bertram Anderson’ is a classic snowdrop with very large and elegant flowers, earning it a coveted Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society.
You have probably figured out that I am absolutely crazy about snowdrops, a confirmed galanthophile. This passion is hard to understand or explain even to myself. One of the frustrations of being a galanthophile in the US is that most of the more than 1,500 varieties of snowdrops are not available for viewing here. So while we see lots of photos, and read about all the British snowdrop events, what we really want to do is see the plants in person.
Nursery News: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA, specializing in showy, colorful, and unusual plants for shade. The only plants that we ship are snowdrops and miniature hostas. For catalogues and announcements of events, please send your full name, location, and phone number (for back up use only) to carolyn@carolynsshadegardens.com. Click here to get to the home page of our website for catalogues and information about our nursery and to subscribe to our blog.
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This is one of the best examples of ‘Art Nouveau’ that I have seen. Notice the way the spathe (encloses the bud before flowering) curves elegantly over the flower.
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You can imagine my excitement when I was recently invited to visit and photograph the wide-ranging snowdrop holdings of a local collector. Although there were hundreds of snowdrop cultivars in bloom, certain plants really stood out, and I want to share them with you. Here they are in alphabetical order.
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‘Bill Bishop’ is similar to ‘Bertram Anderson’—they are both in the ‘Mighty Atom’ group—but its flowers are longer and wider.
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‘Cider with Rosie’ has the glossy, bright green leaves characteristic of its species Galanthus woronowii.
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My eye is always drawn to Galanthus gracilis because of its dark blue-green leaves and markings and the graceful flare of the tips of the inner segments.
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‘Gravity’ is another giant flower, this time with quilted outer segments and an endearing little face.
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Virescent (all green) snowdrops like ‘Green Tear’ are the current rage and fetch astounding prices on eBay in the UK.
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‘Hoverfly’ has a definite insect look to it when swaying in the breeze on its long crooked pedicel (flower stem).
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‘The Iliad’, a cultivar of Galanthus trojanus, has the dark markings and large, cupped outer segments that I prefer.
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‘Jessica’ sports some beautiful stripes.
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‘Madelaine’ is a very desirable yellow snowdrop.
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‘Mother Goose’ has the darkest gold marking to date and made the UK papers last year with a very high price.
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‘Natalie Garton’ is a lovely cultivar that produces extra, oversized inner segments. You can see them hanging down below the green mark.
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The underside of ‘Natalie Garton’.
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The green stripes on the outside of ‘South Hayes’ make it very unique and desirable.
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‘The Whopper’ is coveted for its large size and bold markings.
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This seedling of the common snowdrop, so new it has no name, is anything but common with its bold green-shaded outer segments, delicately white-edged inner segments, and ghostly teardrop marking.
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As you can tell, all snowdrops most definitely do not look alike, although I am the first to admit that they usually require up close viewing. I was thrilled to see some of the rarer forms in person and share them with you.
Carolyn
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Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a local retail nursery in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, U.S., zone 6b/7a. The only plants that we mail order are snowdrops and miniature hostas and only within the US.
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