Galanthus in November 2017

[Rick Goodenough]

Friends,

Here is a G. r-o which is in its prime on this warm autumn day, about 70F/21C in SE Massachusetts, U.S. This is an un-named cultivar from a U.S. source, Edelweiss Perennials.

Rick

[Gail]

Lovely picture Rick and 21C in Massachusetts sounds delightful!

[Maggi Young]

21 degrees - flowers, and dry leaves !  Bliss!

[Rick Goodenough]

Thank you Gail and Maggie! I have another treasure dropping and opening today in the garden. This is a Melvyn Jope selection, G. r-o 'Sofia'.

Rick

[Yanik Neff]

Very nice snowdrops Rick. I love the combination of leaves and snowdrops in autumn:
Barnes

[Alan_b]

Galanthus ‘Smaragdsplitter’ (meaning Emerald Splinter, I'm told).  It is standing very tall on a scape that is bolt upright.



I got this in April 2015 as a single bulb with a small offset.  It did not manage to flower in 2015 but the full-sized bulb produced a flower last year and again this.  Unfortunately it remains a single bulb with a non-flowering offset so it is not proving to be terribly vigorous for me, so far.  Hitherto it has been 'quarantined' in a pot but perhaps now it's time to try it in a bed?

This one, called 'Kryptonite' I only got earlier this year and this is the first time I have seen it flower.  If I remember my Superman comics, there were different sorts of Kryptonite in different colours but green Kryptonite was the most common form.  As a snowdrop it is very striking but I have no idea what it will be like to grow.  I was told that it is not reliably early but this year it is. 



A few years ago I would have thought that an early elwesii with green markings on the outer petals was so statistically unlikely that I would never see one.  I wonder where these 'impossibilities' originate from?     

[Marie-Rose N]

Hello,

[Brian Ellis]

Hello Marie-Rose, welcome to the forum.  Lovely to see these brave snowdrops forced their way through the snow!

I wonder where these 'impossibilities' originate from?     

Alan, I always think these types originate in the west of the Czech Republic as the earlier introductions were all found there I believe.

[Maggi Young]

Hello Marie-Rose, a delightful photo - a reminder of the time of year for sure!
It even felt "cold enough for snow" here yesterday.

[Alan_b]

Hello and welcome, Marie-Rose.  I have snowdrops here now but no snow to go with them. 

Alan, I always think these types originate in the west of the Czech Republic as the earlier introductions were all found there I believe.

I looked-up elwesii in the Monograph and that does not even mention the Czech republic (or Slovakia) as a place where elwesii snowdrops can be found.  The Monograph suggests that the majority of the elwesii that have been imported from Turkey over the years have perished but natural selection has left us with ones that are best-adapted to the climate of Northern Europe.  I worry that exotic green-marked autumn-flowering elwesii snowdrops that have appeared recently are being 'fast-tracked' and may not prove garden-worthy.  Although perhaps they can be cross-bred with other ones that are in order to improve the stock. 

[Brian Ellis]

Yes of course I meant the nivalis types from the Czech Republic have that colouring, but considering where Jorg lives it is not a vast leap from there to cross with elwesii and hopefully get such lovely snowdrops.  After all someone put a single elwesii in a population of nivalis and the bees did the work to create a new snowdrop.

[Leena]

Galanthus ‘Smaragdsplitter’ 

I almost ordered this from Glen Chantry last summer, but luckily found in the forum posts that it is very early flowering, and indeed, if it flowers already this time in Britain, then it won't do here. It is good to know that also 'Kryptonite' is autumn flowering snowdrop.

My attempts with autumn flowering snowdrops have all failed. In 2015 I planted 'Tilebarn Jamie', 'Cambridge' and an unnamed G.reginae-olgae. That autumn was mild and they all managed to flower, especially the unnamed one, but in all of them the leaves suffered a lot during the following winter even under snow. Autumn 2016 only the unnamed managed to get to  bud stage before the winter came in early November, the other two were just showing their noses at that time, and never produced leaves even in the spring. Also the leaves of the unnamed were very damaged in the spring when the snow melted.
This autumn there was no sign of any of them in late October, and when they promised snow I dug the place where they were growing and didn't find any bulbs at all. Most likely the bulbs had diminished when they hadn't had no or very damaged leaves to feed the bulbs in earlier years. They were all planted in the sunniest place I have, in a dryish slope with good soil.
It seems to me that only the snowdrops which come up in September have time to flower here, and even the ones which flower in that time in Britain or Germany do not flower here in September, but come up a month later when it is too late and too cold for them. It is the same with Colchicums and autumn Crocuses, they all come up here later than the same cultivars or species in Britain, but especially Colchicums still early enough to flower.

[Alan_b]

My attempts with autumn flowering snowdrops have all failed. In 2015 I planted 'Tilebarn Jamie', 'Cambridge' and an unnamed G.reginae-olgae.

I think you chose the wrong species, Leena.  Even in the UK we can struggle to grow reginae-olgae outdoors (and peshmenii is well-nigh impossible).  But elwesii might prove more hardy; 'Barnes', for example, is vigorous and therefore inexpensive.         

[Leena]

Alan, you must be right, also the last two winters were cold with very little snow in beginning of January, more snow came later in January and February. G.elwesii seems to be hardy enough to grow here, though I have tried 'Barnes' and it never came up. Perhaps I should give it a one more try. 'Mrs Macnamara' (even though it is not elwesii) flowers earlier in Britain, but even though it may show it's nose in December also here, it waits nicely until most of the winter is over before it flowers in February-March, even in April. Many times it has fully developed flower inside the snow and ready to open when the snow melts. It also increases well.
When I started to collect snowdrops I thought only late ones are good to grow here, but now I think also ones which flower after Christmas in Britain, may do well here flowering just later in the spring. So planting also earlier flowering snowdrops may lengthen the snowdrop time also here a bit.

[steve owen]

Leena
Have you tried Peter Gatehouse? Its tough as old boots.
Steve