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Snowdrop

Spring-Flowering Bulb

Also known as Common Snowdrop, Fair Maid of February
Galanthus nivalis
Amaryllidaceae Family

One of the earliest flowering spring bulbs, Snowdrop's fresh green foliage and delicate, pure white blooms, herald springtime. Generally grows 6 inches or less and performs best in cool, moist, partially shaded areas.

	Site and Plant Characteristics
	Growing Information
	Varieties

Site Characteristics

Sunlight:

part shade

Soil conditions:

requires well-drained soil

Performs well in heavy soils with alkaline pH.

Hardiness zones:

3 to 9

Special locations:

outdoor containers
indoors as a houseplant

Plant Traits

Lifecycle: perennial

Ease-of-care: easy

Height: 0.25 to 0.5 feet

Spread: 0.25 to 0.5 feet

Bloom time: early spring

Flower color: white

Blooms are pure white.

Foliage color: gray-green

Foliage texture: medium

Shape: herbaceous: other

Leaves form a basal rosette

Shape in flower: flower stalks with flowers hanging downward

Pendulous blooms hang from erect flower stalks.

Special Considerations

Special characteristics:

non-aggressive - Plants rapidly form clumps, but they do not spread aggressively.
non-invasive
not native to North America - Native to Europe

Growing Information

How to plant:

Propagate by division or separation - Divide in spring, either during or after flowering, or in the fall. Plant the bulbs with their tops 2" beneath the soil surface. Take care to not allow the bulbs to dry out.

Maintenance and care:

Divide the plants when the clumps become overcrowded, about every 3 to 4 years.
More growing information: How to Grow Bulbs

Varieties

'Flore Pleno': double pure white blooms with many extra petals.
'Pusey Green Tips': many-petalled blooms with green-tipped white petals.
'Lutescens': white blooms with yellow based inner petals.
'Scharlockii': green-tipped inner petals overlapped by two large, white outer petals.