Snowdrops

A friend, who is a keen walker, tipped me off about a stunning carpet of naturalised snowdrops, in the woods above Fewston Reservoir in the Washburn Valley, so one day I had an expedition to find them. They were all around a ruined building that might once have been a cottage. It seemed rather pleasing to think that a few snowdrops planted in (perhaps) a gamekeeper's garden should spread and naturalise so abundantly, lasting long after the cottage disappeared. They made a magnificent display.

The 'native' snowdrop, Galanthus nivalis, isn't actually native to the UK at all. It is believed that it was first cultivated in 1597 and first recorded in the wild in the 1770s, but snowdrops are now naturalised throughout Britain. Dedicated to the Virgin Mary, they are much loved because they are the earliest bulbs to flower after the winter, often pushing their blooms up through actual snow. I think my photo below amply demonstrates why they are called 'snowdrops'. They look just like a light dusting of snow on the woodland floor.