Snowdrops

About this book

Everything you need to know about the cultivation and propagation of snowdrops: tips, tools, and sources of supply. Snowdrops: the harbinger of spring, delicate and charismatic. Over 300 varieties of snowdrops are portrayed here for the first time in such abundance – brilliantly photographed in their natural environment. The reader learns everything necessary to cultivate and propagate these bulbs, about collecting them and the right tools of the trade. Indispensible for galanthophiles, Snowdrops will spark the interest of beginners and is a beautiful and practical reference work for connoisseurs.

Contents

Foreword 6
Snowdrops 9
The Plant 10
Species 10
Flowers 12
Flowering Times 13
Foliage 14
Bulb 15
Origins and distribution 15
Varieties 16
Galanthus alpinus 16
Galanthus angustifolius 16
Galanthus cilicicus 17
Galanthus elwesii 17
Galanthus fosteri 19
Galanthus gracilis 19
Galanthus ikariae 20
Galanthus koenenianus 21
Galanthus krasnovii 22
Galanthuslagodechianus 23
Galanthus nivalis 23
Galanthus peshmenii 24
Galanthus platyphyllus 24
Galanthus plicatus 25
Galanthus reginae-olgae 26
Galanthus rizehensis 26
Galanthus transcaucasicus 27
Galathnus trojanus 27
Galanthus woronowii 27
Emergence of New Varieties 28
Snowdrops in the Garden 33
Pests and Diseases 33
Location 36
Planting 38
Care 44
Propagation 45
Pests and Diseases 46
Collecting 50
What is a Galanthophile? 50
The Pioneers 52
The Love of Money 54
Snowdrop Collectors Past and Present 54
Tools 56
What To Collect 59
Sources of Snowdrops 60
Beg and Borrow 61
Again: The Love of Money 62
Advanced Trading 65
Gallery 65
Varieties 66
New Varieties 150
Sources 157
Collections to Visit 158
Index 159

Customer Reviews

Biography

Gunter Waldorf was bitten by the gardening bug at the age of six. Today, together with his wife, he maintains a substantial garden in Nettetal am Niederrhein in Germany, with around 450 varieties of snowdrops. He organises the successful Snowdrop Days that take place there every February.