28 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
SNOWDROPS. 
By E. A. Bowles, M.A., F.E.S., F.L.S., V.M.H. 
[Read May 22, 1917; Mr. F. J. Hanbury in the Chair.] 
People often speak of " the Snowdrop " as though they thought 
there was but one kind, and even good gardeners frequently fail to 
notice the points of difference between the numerous varieties of 
these plants. The object of this lecture is to draw attention to the 
range of interest and beauty possessed by the Snowdrop family for 
those who care to look closely into a flower. Of late years too many 
have come to regard flowers merely as producers of colour effects 
both in the garden and when gathered to decorate their rooms, and the 
individuality and charm of variations in form and marking have been 
much neglected. 
It is true that where it is possible to naturalize Snowdrops in great 
drifts in woodland or other wild ground, no variety is better for the 
purpose than the Common Snowdrop, that is to say, the single form 
of Galanthus nivalis that has spread so freely in some parts of Great 
Britain as to be reckoned one of our wild flowers, though it was prob- 
ably introduced by the Romans. On the other hand, quite a small 
garden can contain a collection of varieties that should produce a 
succession of blossoms from October till April, and will provide plen- 
tiful interest for those who like to compare the variations of distinct 
forms. 
Before looking at the various species and forms, it is worth while 
noting some of the more interesting structural peculiarities of Snow- 
drops. 
The Snowdrop is a member of the Natural Order Amaryllidaceae, 
that is to say, that group of Lily-shaped flowers in which the ovary, or 
seed-vessel, is below or outside the floral segments, and not above or 
inside them, as in the Liliaceae ; while its six stamens distinguish it at 
once from the Iridaceae, in which Order there are only three. 
The flower is pendent. Its position is reversed at the moment it 
bursts as a bud from between the two spathes united by thin membranes 
to form its protecting cover when first it is pushed above ground. It 
is not entirely due to the weight of the flower that it hangs thus. 
The flower-stalk lengthens while the bud is still enclosed between 
the spathes, and takes a sharp curve just below the ovary, sufficient 
to place the flower at about the same angle as that of most 
daffodils and many other members of this order, such as Hippeastrum, 
Amaryllis, and Crinum. The slender flower-stalk and the weight of 
the flower complete the work and produce the hanging bell. This is 
an ideal form for a flower opening so early in the year in such change- 
