The patient gardener is rewarded

March 27th, 2007 by Kathy Purdy · 7 Comments

Good things come to those who wait. At least ten years ago, I planted the first of these snowdrops lining the path to the Secret Garden. You will have to click on the photo to enlarge it in order to see them, because they are the ones way in the back, on the far side of the footbridge, looking no more than a white blob from this distance. They are the same snowdrops that you see in every header image, because they have been nice, substantial clumps for at least as long as we’ve owned a digital camera.

Since they were given to me by a friend, who had dug them from a field adjoining her property, I really don’t know which species of Galanthus they are. But based on Don’s description, my best guess is that they are Galanthus nivalis. It is quite wet along this path at the moment, and these snowdrops multiply rapidly.

Case in point: all of the snowdrops you see here came from the original ones way in the back. And just as I planted the very first ones, so I planted them all: digging them up and dividing them right after they bloom, and then replanting them, singly, about six inches apart. Every place where there is now a clump of snowdrops, there was once a solitary blossom, scarcely visible against the dormant, soggy grass.

Stumble it!

Categories: Snowdrops

Keywords: mud season · snowdrop · snowdrops

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7 responses so far ↓

1 The County Clerk // Mar 27, 2007 at 11:23 pm

beautiful.

you know, a wonderful thing about plants and gardens is the combination of instant gratification (just watching them) and long term rewards. Just think what a few more years will hold.

thanks for putting this up!
2 entangled // Mar 28, 2007 at 4:31 am

Aha, I just had a light bulb moment reading this. Instead of waiting for the snowdrops to magically naturalize, I should actually practice horticulture and divide them. I’m always reluctant, though, to mess with the ones that are happy where they are. If it ain’t broke and all that.
3 Annie in Austin // Mar 28, 2007 at 9:20 am

What a lovely floral guide for your path, Kathy! The snowdrops in my IL garden were in clumps, but I sort of did the same thing as you advise, while the leaves were still up, I’d split up an established clump and start new ones.

You are so right - new dry bulbs took a long time to get going, but moving them in late spring gave much better results.

Annie at the Transplantable Rose
4 Colleen // Mar 28, 2007 at 1:40 pm

I had the same “lightbulb moment” as entangled did when I read this. Your snowdrops look so natural, one would never guess that they had a little help
5 Carol // Mar 28, 2007 at 4:35 pm

I am happy to hear that you are finally seeing some flowers blooming!
6 Oldroses // Mar 28, 2007 at 5:55 pm

They’re beautiful! Now if I could just find a spot in my yard where snowdrops like to grow, I’ll know how to “help” them spread.
7 Don // Mar 28, 2007 at 7:10 pm

Kathy… it does look like they are nivalis; a single green mark on each inner petal, small plant and flower, narrow dark green leaves which are applanate.
Nice.