Last weekend there was a snowdrop brunch here. That sounds kind of fancy but in reality it wasn’t, even if we did use real plates instead of paper. I owed my friend Kevin for helping out at the Gala, and thought breakfast would be a good start, but when he already had plans with another friend who just happens to be Kimberley of Cosmos and Cleome I thought let me invite them both. I had been cleaning up the garden all week, and the lure of food might be my best chance at getting someone other than the dog to look at a few snowdrops with me, so the three of us made plans and another name was suggested, two more people were added, and when someone offered to bring a dessert I had to rename our breakfast to brunch since you know you can’t have a dessert after only eating a few scrambled eggs. Plus I wanted to sleep in of course, and not everyone wants breakfast at 11.
‘Blonde Inge’ is a dainty little snowdrop with the added touch of a yellow mark inside. Sometimes the inner glow makes the whole bloom shine but I’m sure that’s just my imagination.
The brunch went well. I believe with the exception of a horribly weak second cup of coffee which I tried to pass off as drinkable, everyone found a bite to eat and something interesting to talk about and the time passed a little to quickly. I got nervous. What if all these people just came here to hang out and eat and no one wants to freeze outside, crawling from snowdrop to snowdrop admiring how different each and every one is and what kind of history it has and how tricky it is to grow and does it multiply well and where did I get it from and…
A ‘Blonde Inge’ seedling. Very similar to mom, but oh so much more amazing because she was born here in this garden.
Eventually I passed out coats and people took the hint. I had fun. People looked cold. Not everyone seemed to care about how ‘Wisley Magnet’ differed from ‘Foxgrove Magnet’, so I think pancakes will still be required to get them back again, but from my perspective it seemed so much healthier to finally be seen talking to other people in the garden rather than myself. I hinted at food and another visit for daffodils and people seemed open to the idea so hopefully with any luck this wasn’t a one and done deal.
Green tipped ‘Viridapice’ with a flush of yellow winter aconite. I know I show these way too often but this is probably my favorite mix of late winter color.
My favorite comment of the day was something to the effect of ‘What the F*&k Frank, how do you have so much flowering!?’ and generally people had other nice things to say as well, but to my shock not everyone wanted to look at each and every clump, and it was more of a yellow vs green, that one is so much larger, and oh look a double, conversations. So rather than find all new friends who will probably eat just as much I’ll just babble on to you about a few of my favorites for this year… and try and not repeat all the favorites which show up as my ‘maybe favorites’ every other year. Key word there is “try”.
A newer snowdrop for me, galanthus ‘Greenfields’ is completely boring and average, but perfectly formed and sturdy and crisply colored with dark green marks on a good sized and pristinely white flower.
Several snowdrops have come up paler this year, including ‘Ivy Cottage Corporal’. Before people began seeing faces in their snowdrops, the people at Ivy Cottage saw the insignia marks for the rank of corporal in this drop.
‘Dick’s Early Yellow’ is just that, and an excellent grower as well.
Last season ‘Midas’ barely bothered with yellow, choosing green instead but this year the color is closer to gold. Brighter days perhaps?
I think of galanthus ‘Elizabeth Harrison’ as an aristocrat amongst snowdrops. She’s a little delicate and can be fussy, but when everything is going her way the bright yellow and white against grass-green foliage strikes me as quite elegant.
Galanthus ‘EA Bowles’ is amazingly beautiful but died off on me a few years ago. Fortunately a friend was able to give me another start and now he’s settled back in and doing well. Good thing, since my friend went on to lose her clump and now hopefully I can share a piece back again this summer.
As American as a snowdrop can get, ‘Carol Simcoe’ was found in a wild population around Allentown Pa and was introduced by Gerald Simcoe and named after the artist’s mother.
In the 1940’s Heyrick Greatorex named a group of doubles which some people seek out. My favorite is ‘Cordelia’ with her long-lasting, sturdy and upright flowers, but the others which I grow may or may not be the true forms, and may or may not be as favored.
For no reason other than my own curiosity, I’m excited about this entirely average snowdrop seedling. The potential mom is behind and I thought she never sets seed but along comes a seedling which shares her long, narrow ovary but with bigger flowers and wider leaves. I think they’re related and I think I like the mix.
So I think I did fairly well there with minimal babbling and maximum efficiency and I also think that summary reflects my whole snowdrop season in general this year. It was too cold, then it became too warm, and for the last week too windy and too stormy. The warmth pushed everything along in some spots but barely thawed the soil in others. The wind made snowdrop viewing uncomfortable and some strong rain beat up a few things even more, but in between there were still a few perfect moments and that’s all I ask.
The first flowers of the Dutch hybrid crocus always signals the downside of the snowdrop season. The garden will be nonstop from now on!
I hope your season is reving up and full of promise as well, and that it brings you joy. For a few days yet everything seems under control and so well planned, but then the tidal wave of weeds, weather, and watering hits and there’s barely a moment to breath, and if you end up there stop. Make sure you have time to breath and enjoy. I shall be doing that today… unless of course I shovel and move a few tons of dirt to level some dips in the lawn next door which will then need seeding and watering and then perhaps I’ll get to my own back lawn which has plenty of spots which need to be a few inches higher and will also need a couple tons of dirt spread and then I probably have to run out for more grass seed and the first box of ordered plants is sitting on the porch steps… and well… *breath*
sorta like suburbia 
Sounds wonderful!
Thanks, we do try to have plenty of fun when we’re together!
Food and flowers… can’t top that. 🙂
You have an amazing collection of snowdrops, Frank. Until your blog, I had no idea there were so many different forms.
I second the perfection of your grouping of aconite, snowdrops and cyclamen. So pretty!
Yeah, food and flowers and friends, and maybe a little foolishness. Not bad 😉
Obviously I’ve gone a bit overboard with the snowdrop thing, with just white, green, and sometimes yellow there’s a lot of repeats!
Yes, breathe! Enjoy!
Also, I’m surprised your friends were surprised at how much you have in bloom. Haven’t they been reading your blog for the past decade?
The pictures on the blog just don’t do it justice, Kathy! I envisioned a little clump here, another clump there . . . This just went on and on and on! And maybe such a profusion came as a surprise to me since I came from what I’ve decided is a full climate zone colder, where there was still ice and snow on the ground and no color at all yet. Anyway, I was fully enchanted!
I might start giving out a quick multiple choice quiz on the most recent blog post at the start of every next adventure. My guests need to be onboard! -but then in exchange they’re probably going to expect me to know things like birthdays and stuff, and I’m useless for that.
Oh, this was fabulous. Loved every one. G. ‘Elizabeth Harrison’ is beautiful with those wide leaves. I think you have to be growing
Thanks Linda, that’s so nice of you to say, and no I’m not growing everything I need yet, so there will still be a few additions here and there 😉
Oh my goodness Frank I wish I could have come to your snowdrop brunch. Your snowdrop collection is the stuff that dreams are made of. You have several from my wish list for when I’m rich. And you are still enjoying them. They are all done and dusted here.
You would have been most welcome 🙂
Yes, I can’t believe how lucky I’ve been in getting snowdrops I never thought I’d even see but here we are! Begging works wonders but then I’ve also spent more on a few than I really care to admit. One wish drop per year is what I gave myself, but more recently I’ve been able to trade which is nicer.
I think the late drops have a few more days thanks to a more seasonal cooler spell, but many are already done. How sad. Just 11 more months to go.
So when’s the daffodil brunch? I’ll bring scones! Or maybe chocolate Guinness cake!
It was a lovely way to spend the morning, Frank, and I personally enjoyed seeing every clump, even if it was completely overwhelming and I barely remember names and colors and markings! Thank you for your hospitality and the tour!
(Also sorry for the f-word! It raced back into my vocabulary right around January 20. At least in this context, it had a positive connotation!)
The Guinness cake is my vote! Your language is always impeccable, it’s the others in the car you need to keep an ear on 🙂
It’s not the worst thing if you don’t remember names. All of you were just so polite and friendly it’s possible I guessed or made up names here and there to sound smart, and I’d hate to be discovered. We will pick a daffodil date!
Elizabeth Harrison is really striking with the yellow throat. Brunch bribery, I like it – would totally steal that idea.
The only bad thing about a brunch bribery is the whole cooking thing. I tried cold, stale bagels one time and from there on I’ve had to always promise fresh eggs or something in order to regain their trust!
Your snowdrops are gorgeous. I have quite a few now but only one variety. Where do you get all those interesting ones?
One variety is just fine, and oftentimes makes a much better show!
Tracking down other varieties is sometimes challenging, I’ve ordered from Temple Gardens, Edgewood, Brandywine Snowdrops, Ernie Cavallo, and Morla’s plants but trading or begging them off friends is usually the best way.
You are so lucky to have friends from nearby prepared to brave the elements to look at your snowdrops! That is the beauty of blogging…. you can find people with exactly the same passions. All too often they live on the other side of the world though! If I could grow them I would possibly get obsessed too. 😉 And those rare perfect moments make all the worry and work worthwhile. By the way, I had plant feed and grass seed delivered today, along with two boxes of plants still waiting to be unpacked! Hoping the north wind won’t return tomorrow and maybe the rain will stop too. Happy spring gardening Frank!
Agreed! I’m sure as your new garden develops shade you’ll start to accumulate a few which thrive for you. No rush though, your full sun plantings are a complete wonder and will keep you busy enough!
I did manage to pot up some new bareroot plants as well as seed new lawn last weekend, so I hope the weather helped you out as well!
A very pleasant way to spend a day
Yes, gardeners are always good company.