Galanthus to identify, please

[Maggi Young]

Hello, just received these photos of a snowdrop that a Belgian Member would like to have identified..... who can help, please?
Click on the photos to enlarge them!

[mark smyth]

Flowering now?

The leaves look like it could be a plicatus elwesii hybrid

[Maggi Young]

I'm assuming so, until I hear otherwise!

[mark smyth]

If it flowers now I suppose it is worth having in the collection. If it flowers in the main season to my eyes it's just another hybrid snowdrop

[Maggi Young]

Yes, it is flowering now .

[Hagen Engelmann]

Maggi, it could be a G. elwesii monostictus of the BARNES or HIEMALIS group. Here bloom also 2-3 cultivares with this background. Think, for a GexGp-Hybrid its too early ?!

[Maggi Young]

Thank you, Hagen.

 As you know, my knowledge of all things Galanthus is minimal, but I did think that this was very early for a G. elwesii x G. plicatus  hybrid .  It seems quite a tall plant?

[mark smyth]

Hagan the largest leaf is plicate

[Hagen Engelmann]

No Mark, there is the pic only bad. All are convolut. Have a look to the top, there are blurring both leaves.

[Paddy Tobin]

I would suggest G. elwesii monostictus Hiemalis Group also.

Mark, I think the largest leaf is convolute but the photograph, with the way the plant is lying, does make it look plicate but, I think, it is only that the lower leaf in the photograph seems to be part of the upper leaf because of the angle of the shot.

Paddy

[Maggi Young]

I would suggest G. elwesii monostictus Hiemalis Group also.

Mark, I think the largest leaf is convolute but the photograph, with the way the plant is lying, does make it look plicate but, I think, it is only that the lower leaf in the photograph seems to be part of the upper leaf because of the angle of the shot.

Paddy

I've just been having a closer look and I believe Hagen and Paddy are correct about the leaves.

[Maggi Young]

I have information that the plant is flowering now, in a garden, not a pot. Here is a photo of the leaves, with a ruler for scale....
click the pic to enlarge....

[mark smyth]

that snowdrop is not happy. Soon it will be dormant and may not appear again until this time 2009.

[mark smyth]

Maggi tell your friend the snowdrop needs to be moved out of the sun and wind. The leaves must stay as green as possible and not allowed to dry out

[Alan_b]

i thought 'Barnes' was in the G.elwesii var.Hiemalis group?

rob

Galanthus reginae olgae is an autumn-flowering snowdrop with some (early) spring-flowering varieties that are classed as a subspecies (ssp venalis).

Galanthus elwesii is a spring flowering (if January/February can be called spring) snowdrop with some varieties that flower earlier (in November and December).  The December-flowering ones are quite easy to find, even sometimes in garden centres, and are almost always with monostictus-type markings on the inner petals.  There are so many of these that they are classified as var. Hiemalis group, although I could not tell you why they are not ssp. Hiemalis by analogy with G. reginae olgae.

Within the var Hiemalis group there are a few named varieites and I would say 'Barnes' is one of those.  I don't think Hagen meant to imply otherwise.