Galanthus March 2016

[Gerard Oud]

Oh just one find and you binned it, you did not bin it, you killed it Try next time before you take anything out to be just a little more critical and leave it where its growing!

[Maggi Young]

Gerard, You sound angry  but   I think you misunderstand -  sometimes in a garden a seedling will be  mis-shapen and mutated - many people prefer to destroy that rather than keep it  - often for the very good reason that a disease may be present which might  affect their other plants.
That is surely a valid choice for them to make.  As it is also  to mention surprise that a  plant which is  "described" as unstable might be  worthy of  registration and propagation - after all - if it is  variable and unstable , how  can you know exactly what it is?   

 Can we not express these  worries? Is it not part of  valid discussion or must we just all "like" everything?

[Gerard Oud]

Maggi i am not angry at all, and you know that. I was teasing a bit There are always people that have comments on others things and never show theire own findings because they are afraid of comments

Maybe better to ignore next time. Or just tell them that when they are searching in the wild, they should think and look  twice before you lift anything! And finally throw it in the bin!

[Maggi Young]

Thank you, Gerard! 

[Chris Johnson]

Maggi i am not angry at all, and you know that. I was teasing a bit There are always people that have comments on others things and never show theire own findings because they are afraid of comments

Maybe better to ignore next time. Or just tell them that when they are searching in the wild, they should think and look  twice before you lift anything! And finally throw it in the bin!

Gerard,
This has drifted a bit from my genuine enquiry as to why someone would want to register an irregular plant. Alan may have a very good reason for doing so, and I would like to know.

I got the impression you were goading me a bit which is why I put on my flippancy hat and gave you the 'binning' answer.

I don't bin anything unless it is virused or diseased.

[Gerard Oud]

If i could give a thumb up on this page i would Chris 

[Chris Johnson]

I'm sure Maggi will be along to provide an artistic 'thumbs-up' from her archive of cartoons.

[Gerard Oud]

Just attached one Chris! From one of my favorite series Happy days!

[Alan_b]

Why would anyone want to register a snowdrop with irregular, intermittent and sporadic features? Surely not desirable features?

I thought this too at first but it's the detail that is irregular.  Viewed as a group the eye averages-out the irregularities and what you see is small bell-shaped flowers, each with a green fringe.  The effect is pleasing to my eye.  The clue to my opinion is in the name 'The More the Merrier'.  It's also such a vigorous snowdrop that if I threw it in the bin it would probably climb out again.

Edit:  I should also mention that I found this as a single bulb in 2009 and had it under observation for six seasons before deciding it was worthy of name - so this was not a rushed judgement.  Sometimes the qualities of a plant only become apparent after a long period of observation; undue haste in deciding a plant is of no value seems no better than undue haste in giving something a name.

[Chris Johnson]

Thanks for the explanation, Alan. There had to be more to it. There was an entertaining interlude on the way.

[Gerard Oud]

Duh!

[Chris Johnson]

Duh!

[Leena]

Finally snow is starting to melt here! I have helped the snowdrops a little by removing the snow carefully with rake.
'Mrs Macnamara', and the second photo 'Lapwing'. I didn't know it was also an early snowdrop.

[Tim Ingram]

Leena, I just gave a talk tonight on snowdrops and hellebores and the first picture I showed was 'Mrs MacNamara' flowering on a sunny day in December! What a difference climate makes - and how very beautiful those young shoots look appearing through the snow . You have a lot of excitement to come whilst we all learn to calm down here . (Just had 'Lapwing' for a year now and already it has become a firm favourite - I don't know how this happens with so many snowdrops to choose from , maybe Alan's 'The More the Merrier' has something to say about it!!). This is the wonderful 'Cicely Hall' again flowering with us now, and around this time last year, 'Marjorie Brown'.

[Leena]

Tim, you have so lovely clumps of late snowdrops. 

Leena, I just gave a talk tonight on snowdrops and hellebores and the first picture I showed was 'Mrs MacNamara' flowering on a sunny day in December! What a difference climate makes .

You have such a long snowdrop season! Here it is only from when the snow melts until beginning of May. I think now that snowdrops can adjust a little to the climate. 'Mrs Macnamara' was planted in summer 2013 (one bulb) and in 2014 it came up already in December and was showing white when the winter came around New Year. Then it stayed under snow and was further developed even under snow. In spring 2015 it was also early but not quite so early coming up, and last December I was even worried when I didn't see any sign of it before the winter came after Christmas, but it was ok, just coming up later. And it has increased from one bulb quite nicely because there are several flowers coming up this year. It is still earlier than many other snowdrops I have, but not so early as what it was when I got it.
I'm now expecting 'Lapwing' also to adjust to our climate and be a little later coming up in the next years.
When I started to collect snowdrops I thought that late snowdrops are better here, they don't come up too early and flower inside the snow, but now I'm not so sure anymore, as at least some early snowdrops seem to do well also here. I'm still learning.