A plant to love: summer snowflake
I’ve fallen head over heels in love with this plant. In mid-spring each year I fall for it again. I’m not being terribly careless: these gorgeous tiffany-lamp blooms are perfect.
Yes, I know it looks a bit like a snowdrop, but come April, we’re a bit beyond snowdrops, aren’t we? We need something a little bigger. So Leucojum aestivum ‘Gravetye Giant’ comes along at just the right time. Like snowdrop,s the best time to move these plants is when they are in the green (just after flowering), and like snowdrops too, they like a good rich soil. But these are so much more than just snowdrops. They’re less shy, and like to grow in full sun where you can see their nodding white lampshade-flowers in all their glory. And they prefer damp, heavy soil, which means they are the spring saviour of all gardeners despairing of their thick, unwieldy clay soil.
Vital stats
Location:
Damp soil. Happy in boggy areas around ponds
Light:
Full sun
When to plant:
Late April – early May, just after flowering
What can I expect from this plant?
Height: 50cm
Spread: 15cm
Flowers: April
I have a horrid feeling I have lost mine. Bought a small one two years ago and it was definately still there last year but I dont think I have seen it this.
Oh those are beautiful, they are like snowdrops – I want some I really do.
i think they are one of those plants that if they like you, they go mad! i have huge clumps all over the place, including in the middle of a waterlogged paddock – they get trampled and driven over but come back even better every spring.
This snowflake arrived spontaneously in my garden a few years ago… And last year, it was blooming for the first time. I haven’t seen buds this year yet, but the plant is still there.
No idea how it arrived in my garden. The species is rather rare in Belgium, but in the region were I live, it’s sometimes found in boggy area’s. It has been found not so far from where I live, but my garden isn’t boggy at all. I presume mine is a garden variety, who’s bulb probably arrived here with some other bulbs.
thank you! I found these in my yard this spring and love them, but I had no idea what they were until I found them here. I need more, much more!