In a Grimm Brother variation of the well-known tale Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the heroine is called Snowdrop. Her royal stepmother attempts to discover the future with a fairy looking-glass, which tells her:
Thou, queen, art fair, and beauteous to see,
But Snowdrop is lovely far than thee!
The sibling pair's German roots also account for the name Snowdrop: in that language Schneetropfen were pendants or earrings fashionable in 16th and 17th centuries; and schneeglöckchen 'little snow bells.'
Known to the Greek author Theophrastus, some speculate that over half a millennia earlier Homer hinted on them in his Odyssey as the mysterious herb moly to counteract her poison of enchantress Circe. Be that as it may, when the botanist Linnaeus got around to scientifically classifying snowdrops in 1753, he designated them Galanthus, from Greek gala, milk and anthos, flower. In English they have, perhaps more poetically, been called 'Fair Maids of February.' Less attractively, 'snowdrop' was the nickname for U.S. military police in Britain during World War II!
Experts argue over just how many species should be recognized. Perhaps as many as 20 have been discovered in Europe, Turkey, Iran, and the Caucasus; new species continue to be discovered. Over 500 cultivars have been described but, as we shall see, many have disappeared. Galanthophiles, snowdrop enthusiasts, are ever-eager to gain new examples--and pay the price. A single bulb was sold for $2,500 (£725) by Thompson & Morgan on 16 February 2015 for a G. woronowii 'Elizabeth Harrison' named after the owner of the garden in Scotland where it was found growing. Presumably they were not concerned with old English and Welsh folklore that the flowers are unlucky in home.
Harbingers of spring they offer opportunities to early-emerging honeybees. Contrary to the common fall sale time of the bulbs, however, galanthophiles will only replant carefully separated bulbs when they are in bloom, or soon after as the foliage withers.
As with most early blooming bulbs, snowdrops are tolerant of a range of growing conditions. Moist but well-drained soil with plenty of organic matter will produce the best results. Space three inches apart, four inches deep in either full sun or locations shaded by deciduous trees. The earliest flowers emerge in southerly, sheltered sites. They naturalize easily and may seed themselves.
The most often seen form, the common snowdrop, Galanthus nivalis from Europe through Turkey, has six white petal-like tepals in two circles, inner ones have green markings on stems three to eight inches tall.
Regardless of this description, G. nivalis is highly variable with, since the mid-19th century, many hybrids. Earliest and one of the greatest hybridizers was James Allen (1832-1906) of Shepton Mallet, England. A festival is held locally each year in his honour. Alas, while he amassed several hundred hybrids, his collection was almost completely destroyed by a major pest following his death.
There is something about these seemingly fragile first signs of spring that attracts enthusiasts. British plant collector E. A. Bowles (1865-1954) was active in the first half of the last century. James Allen, a snowdrop grower, collected in the Caucasus and lent his name to the almond-scented Galanthus allenni. Aaron P. Davis, a botanist at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew led expeditions in search of rare and new species. John Grimshaw, gardener, author, and director Yorkshire Arboretum, is well-known amongst galanthophiles as a snowdrop expert. And let us not forget the delightfully named Primrose Warburg (1920-96), wife of botanist E. F. Warburg, of South Hayes, Oxfordshire.
Outside of speculation as the identity of Homer's magical moly, however, medicine seems to have passed over snowdrops, at least until recently and then dubiously. John Gerard's celebrated Herbal of 1597 records it has having arrived in England "many years past." Claims of herbal remedies remain unsupported. Certainly, they contain an active agglutinin, claimed to have damaged rat intestines. Anyway, at up to two thousand bucks a bulb, is it worth the risk?
Wes Porter is a horticultural consultant and writer based in Toronto. Wes has over 40 years of experience in both temperate and tropical horticulture from three continents.
In a Grimm Brother variation of the well-known tale Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the heroine is called Snowdrop. Her royal stepmother attempts to discover the future with a fairy looking-glass, which tells her:
