Any snowdrops yet?

I was out this morning and my snowdrops are already showing white. I've got some primroses as well though they are often a law unto themselves anyway.

Anyone else noticed any unseasonally early birds?

 

I've got primroses and seen some daisies. The snowdrops are up but not open yet.

 

Gorse bushes have started to flower but too cold for the insects to get any benefit

My snowdrop that flowered in Nov Dec has set seed.

Ebay has started with the snowdrop craze not looking to bad at the moment, one bulb £53.00 bargain after what happened last year over £1000 and to think they had the cheek to ask for P&P on top of that.

Spruce

 

I love snowdrops! I've yet to see any though.

 

Especially as they all look the same. To me anyway!

 

Here's me in what's meant to be the frozen North near St Andrews in Scotland to be precise and I have a few Snowdrops flowering and quite a few Aconites out too. Ridiculously early. If we continue to have such mild weather my 1000s of Snowdrops will all be out probably by the end of January. What's the betting we then get a massive fall of snow just when they are looking their best!

 

Snowdrops poking up out of snow have a certain wintry glamour about them!

 

Yes I agree up to a point, unfortunately it's not unheard of for us to get the odd foot of snow which is another whole ball game!

 

Sacrilege!

Bog standard Single (Galanthus nivalis)


Outer petals are white and about twice as long as inner, inner petals have an inverted-V green marking on them

I have varieties that are incredibly early (November) or late; some are exceptionally tall (you would be hard pressed to believe they were snowdrops)


Mighty Atom - long outers, pronounced marking on inner


Mighty Atom and standard G. nivalis comparison

and really long outer petals:

G. Wasp

Tubby ones:

G. plicatus Augustus

and ones with green on the outer petals:

G. nivalis "Viridapice"

and tubby ones with green on the outer petals:

G. Jaquenetta

Then you get yellow ones:

Wendy's Gold

Bog standard double:

G. nivalis flore pleno

and fancy double ones:


Lady Beatrix Stanley

and yellow double ones:

G. nivalis "Lady Elphinstone"

 

Nice try, Kristen! I concede there are some differences. (On your hands and knees with your nose pressed to the soil with a magnifying glass.)

 

Indeed. We went to a specialist Snowdrop sale last February. Everyone else in anoraks and woolly hats, it was FREEZING!! and yes on their Day's Off they do go crawling in the woods on their hands and knees hoping to find The Next Great Thing. If I wanted to go plant hunting then give me something that flowers mid Summer so I can be in T-shirt and Shorts please!

But ... picked for a small vase and sitting on the table looks nice

I think this would look nice though,as a clump amongst a sea of Snowdrops:

G. woronowii 'Elizabeth Harrison' which is, I think, the one that fetched £800+ on eBay a year or two back.



You've got to love this one though, surely?

G. elwesii "Grumpy"

 

Or crawl on your hands and Knees to have a look


update """ didnt see all the post but we are thinking the same

 

@Kristen

this one on ebay at the moment but how do you get a new variety registered had a look around but dont know who is it in the UK or abroad
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Buy-the-r...arden_PlantsSeedsBulbs_JN&hash=item417c38af43

 

I have heard of a naming "agency" for snowdrops, and also that there are loads of named varieties that are very difficult to distinguish one from another ... but that one looks rather nice. As a brand new variety, with unusual markings, it is likely to command £500+ - let along the Valentines naming appeal

Two useful sites for Snowdrops that I use are:

http://judyssnowdrops.co.uk/
http://www.snowdropinfo.com/galanthusgallery.htm