Snowdrops in March 2012

[Gerard Oud]

From today, still lots of flowers although one more week and most of them will be over.

One very nice plicatus called The Big Bopper, the flower is a bit bigger then Big Boys flower, its a real Big Bopper!
A very small dwarf nivalis with flowers that measure less then 1/3 inch Minnie the m.
And a very late double found already quite some years ago with a very neat rozet and outer petals that stay around it, Snowqueen.

[Brian Ellis]

Galanthus gracillis

Amazing to see that with such short foliage it is incredibly twisted Franz.

[KentGardener]

John, just the man I need to look at my post number 43 on this thread, and tell me whether my spikey version of PGT is an immature phase, or the wrong cultivar. Please.

Hi Anne

Sorry not to notice your picture and question before - I've just had a look now - my guess is that your flower is not 'Pusey Green Tips'.  Unlike some of the other doubles that do have very different looking flowers on young bulbs I don't think that I have never noticed an "immature phase" flower on 'Pusey Green Tips'.

I've picked the smallest / youngest flower from my clump for you - and as you can see it is just a small version of the mature flower.  There don't appear to be any "immature" flowers on my clump.  Hope these pictures help.

[annew]

Thanks, John. I'll have to label them as ? and see what they do next year.

[Valentin Wijnen]

Past Saturday I found this particular strange form of Galanthus nivalis. When I was driving to a friend, I saw that a poplar plantation with many thousands of snowdrops was being exploited. All the trees being felled and near to a tractor track was this complete clump. It was almost destroyed...Anyway...look al the pic...a two- petalled clump.
In the past I've found three such snowdrops, all of them being single-bulbed. They were never stable...
 Finding this complete clump with 7 flowers out of 6 mature bulbs and some bulbils, I wonder if it is maybe stable. I do think so because it has seven morphologic identical  flowers from different bulbs, so genetically equal... If it's not a modification but a mutation, it will proove to be stable.
In the past, galantophiles have selected many good forms with 4 - 5 - 6 outers and inners, never a two petalled one. it is weird indeed.

[KentGardener]

Great to have you posting this season Valentine.   

Your 2 petal find certainly looks stable and could be a talking point in any collection.   

It would easily find a home in my garden.   

[Alan_b]

Hi Valentin, nice to hear from you on the forum.  I take it those snowdrops have two inners as well as two outer petals?  I found something even weirder this year, which I posted about earlier http://www.srgc.org.uk/forum/index.php?topic=8483.600 reply#612.  But that was a single bulb, so may very well not be stable.

[Brian Ellis]

That is an exciting find Valentin, fingers crossed they are stable.  Well done for rescuing them

[Valentin Wijnen]

In the upcoming weeks I will post quite some very good, exciting new forms of Galanthus nivalis var. 'Scharlockii' which is the 'endemic' variant of G. nivalis in our Ardennes. We have selected the best and outstanding  forms out of the past 6 years. We have been evaluating them all these years in garden conditions. When I say 'we', I mean Johan Mens and I. I do know that these new Scharlockii' will be a talking point between galantophiles too.
I my garden, these forms of Galanthus nivalis var. 'Scharlockii' are crossbreeding. This opens up so many possibilities in the near future...

[KentGardener]

Here's a really weird snowdrop I saw in the woods today; its a 2x4 or is that a 4x2?  What I mean is that it has four outers and two inners arranged symmetrically.

WOW!   

Alan - that is an amazing flower!   

I am guessing a 'never to be seen again'  - but brilliant you caught a photo of it this year.

[KentGardener]

Snowdrops in my meadow

I've just spotted your lovely meadow pictures Franz - looking lovely as always.

This is the first year I remember the grass looking brown.  My memories are always of luscious green grass.

[hadacekf]

John,
You're right, the grass is dead after a - 20 ° C temparature in February.
We still have night frosts of - 8 ° C.

[Valentin Wijnen]

Indeed Alan, this is the weirdest ever to me. It is so special because it is even very difficult - if not impossible - to explain this anomaly talking upon the heredity. Quite special indeed! To be watched over the next year(s)!

[Brian Ellis]

In the upcoming weeks I will post quite some very good, exciting new forms of Galanthus nivalis var. 'Scharlockii' which is the 'endemic' variant of G. nivalis in our Ardennes. We have selected the best and outstanding  forms out of the past 6 years. We have been evaluating them all these years in garden conditions. When I say 'we', I mean Johan Mens and I. I do know that these new Scharlockii' will be a talking point between galantophiles too.
I my garden, these forms of Galanthus nivalis var. 'Scharlockii' are crossbreeding. This opens up so many possibilities in the near future...

Yes indeed it will be exciting to see them Valentin, since seeing Jose Bavcon's book on the variants on Galanthus nivalis in Slovenia back in 2009 I have been waiting to see the next diversity of population shown.  I am sure that there is other diversity in, say, plicatus in the wild which people have yet to publicize and we will all be amazed.

[johnw]

Friends are in Vancouver, BC for a month and have been ordered asked to photograph every snowdrop they see.  Nothing special but at this time of year when the snowdrop seaon is waning in the UK and Europe a couple of shots of nivalis at the Asian Garden at UBC.
Hopefully more will follow.

Nice to have you aboard Valentin and we look forward to your postings.

johnw - sunny, +5c at 08:30 and headed to +12c.