Sam Arnott Snowdrops

~what's the difference Dawn?

Hello Arlene (and Harvey). Well, my Horticulturist friend recommended this variety. Apparently they are spectacular - he said they would look great growing under my block of corsican pines. Maybe they're a large variety - hopefully one of the clever Members will know!

~apparently scented bell shaped flowers 8 inches high!

Wow, thanks Arlene. Probably £2.50 per bulb is the going rate then!? Want some even more now :-)

~I might fancy some as well~ who was selling them?

Hi Arlene, here goes:
www.trecanna.com. Would like to find some cheaper though! But they spread dont they?

~yes if they are left to get on with it!

~ they are saying delivery september/october~too late?

I'll try and find out - had a better look now and they do get cheaper the more you buy

Dawn - a warning - it is not a good idea to plant snowdrops as bulbs. They grow MUCH more reliably from ones bought 'in the green' meaning just as they finish flowering, while the leaves are still on.

For one species Snowdrop you can pay as much as £70 if you are a maniac and have money to burn!!!! Just imagine if the cat scratched it up!

One thing that snowdrop bulbs do not like is drying out. That is why the thinking is to buy plants already growing rather than bulbs which may have been out of the ground for several months (hence very dry and very dead).
Check out Plant Finder on the RHS website (www.rhs.org.uk) and check out suppliers. Good bulb firms should be able to supply them at the correct time

The RHS Rock Garden Plant Trials Subcommittee awarded Galanthus 'S Arnott' an Award of Garden Merit and described it as follows: Bulbous perennial to 15cm, with narrow, grey-green leaves and solitary, nodding, fragrant white flowers 2.5cm long, the inner segments with a thin V-shaped mark at the tip.
Cultivation

Snowdrops should generally be grown in cool shade in any humus-rich, moist but well-drained soil that does not dry out in summer.

Snowdrops are prone to narcissus bulb fly, which will tunnel into the bulbs and destroy them, and also grey mould (botrytis), which will appear on the leaves but then rot the bulbs. More information on grey mould on snowdrops can be found in the advice section.
Propagation

Seed can be sown as soon as ripe in containers in an open frame, though as Galanthus species readily hybridise the seed may not come true.

Galanthus can easily and quickly be propagated by twin scaling in late summer, or early summer. With this technique a bulb is cut into pairs of scales, each of which produces bulblets. More information on bulb propagation can be found in The Garden, August 1999, Volume 124 Part 8, 'Slicing Through - Making more of bulbs' by David Hide and Alan Toogood.

Galanthus bulbs can be increased by lifting and dividing clumps of existing plants. Unlike many bulbs, clumps of Galanthus species should be lifted in the green, as soon as the leaves begin to die back after flowering. Replant each bulb individually, at the same level as before, in holes sufficiently wide to spread out the roots. More information on dividing snowdrops can be found in the advice section.
this is from the RHS site Dawn~sounds like Feb best time!

Just one point about the purchasing and planting of Snowdrops. Whilst it is probable that dried bulbs are as dead as doornails, recently lifted and FRESH bulbs are better for planting than 'in the green' ones. So a company which offers you freshly dug bulbs at any time of the year is ok, just make sure that they are freshly dug.
Many of the named varieties are expensive simply because they are difficult to propagate, do not come true from seed, are slow to multiply or are hard to keep pure.
If anyone wants to try twin scaling, believe me you need, a really good sharp surgical scalpel, good eyesight, a steady hand and strong nerves!

~Trecanna are selling them for £2.50 in a 9 cm pot~ saying available now~would this be ok?

If they are sprouting, go for it

~thanks Andrew!

Hello Arlene, Spritzhenry, Andrew and Owdboggy. Thank you so much for your information and advice. I will try and get some freshly dug Sam Arnott's, I must admit, until you all advised, I didnt realise that dry bulbs were not good. Dont fancy a go at twin scaling though Owdboggy! Suppliers are not easy to find, I've emailed Trecanna to ask if they are freshly dug and when they are available but they havent got back to me yet. If they come back and say they will be supplied freshly dug I'll buy about £20's worth and give them a try. Many thanks again for all your knowledge. Regards, Dawn

I just hope you are not disappointed. I have photographs of various Snowdrops taken at Alpine Garden Society shows (mainly the early one in Caerleon) and to be honest they all look pretty much the same, except for the double one and the green flowered one.
My own Snowdrops are coming though the soil now, which is incredibly early.

~mine are too!I did put them in as bulbs without realising that was bad news, but they all came up last year and are peeking out now~ maybe just lucky!I wouldn't mind some if they are scented love all things wintery with a perfume!
Perhaps if Dawn could let me know what they say?

Actually just had a thought. If anyone does buy dried bulbs they could try soaking them in warm water over night before planting and perhaps add a little fungicide to the water as well. Never had to try this with snowdrops as we have probably about 10,000 in the garden already, but it does help with Erythroniums etc. (But not with F. meleagris, they are almost always dead).

Hi Arlene, they havent got back to me yet by email, I'll have to give them a ring, I'll let you know.
Owdboggy: Thanks for the tip on soaking the bulbs, might get some and give it a go and plant them in another part of the garden. I hope I'm not disappointed with the Sam Arnott's :-(
Just out of interest, do the same rules apply with bluebells?

~I think so Dawn!

Thanks Arlene

It does with English bluebells. They and Snowdrops and some others are what is known as 'naked; bulbs. They lack the tunic (skin) like a Narcissus or a tulip which protects them from drying out. It is all to do with the reason why they have developed underground storage organs. Some have done it to escape the heat of the summer and have bulbs which can withstand drying. Others have done it to escape from being overshadowed. They often grow in moist conditions and have no need to protect against drying. And before the experts jump on me I know this is a very much simplified summary.

That's wonderful information Owdboggy, thank you so much. So can I presume that bluebells are best set freshly lifted too, like the snowdrops.

English bluebells certainly are best as fresh bulbs. I think the Spanish ones are a lot tougher.
http://www.eurobulbs.co.uk

Wonderful info again, thank you very much and for the link to the website.

This week's Garden News, 12th January, has a very good feature on snowdrops by Carol Klein with good pics of various types of snowdrops. There is a list of suppliers as well.