Plant Name Snowdrop  
Scientific Name Galanthus Nivalis  
Family Amaryllis  
Plant Type Perennial  
Start of Blooming Season March  
End of Blooming Season April  

 

The common snowdrop, Galanthus Nivalis, is the best-known and most widespread of the twenty species in Galanthus genus. Snowdrops are among the first bulbs to bloom in spring and can form impressive carpets of white in areas where they are native or have been naturalized. They should not be confused with group of flowers called snowflakes, in the genera Leucojum and Acis. The genus name Galanthus is derived from the greek words 'gala' which means milk, and 'anthos' which translates to flower. The genus name was given by Carl Linnaeus in 1735. He described Galanthus nivalis in his Species Plantarum published in 1753. The epithet 'nivalis' means "of the snow", referring either to the snow-like flower or the plant's early flowering. The common name snowdrop first appeared in the 1633 edition of John Gerard's "Great Herbal". However, in the first edition of "Great Herbal" he described it as the "Timely flowering Bulbus violet". The derivation of the name is uncertain, although it may have come from the German word Schneetropfen, which was a type of earring popular around that time. Other British traditional common names include "February fairmaids", "dingle-dangle", "Candlemas bells", "Mary's tapers" and, in parts of Yorkshire, "snow piercers."

Snowdrops contain an active substance called galantamine (or galanthamine) which is currently being studied in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

Within the realm of rational and holistic medicine, there is currently no historical, or current, uses for snowdrops.

Please note that MIROFOSS does not suggest in any way that plants should be used in place of proper medical and psychological care. This information is provided here as a reference only.

Snowdrops may have long term toxicity concerns and should not be consumed. The bulb of the snowdrop plant is considered to be poisonous.

Snowdrops can grow in medium (loamy) or heavy (clay) soils, and prefers moist soil. Snowdrops can grow in acid, neutral, and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade and is known for attracting insects. Due to the toxicity of snowdrops, it is considered to be deer resistant. Snowdrops are cultivated for the rapidly spreading white flowers. It naturalizes rapidly from seed. At 15cm in height, it is suitable for planting in grass, and will spread by seed to form large colonies that go dormant by the time grass needs to be mowed. In the Eastern United States and Canada it is becoming invasive in some situations.

Soil Conditions
Soil Moisture
Sunlight
Notes:

Snowdrops are a spring perennial herbaceous plant which can grow from 7cm to 15cm tall, flowering between January and April in the northern temperate zone. Snowdrops grow from a bulb which produces two linear, or very narrowly lanceolate, grayish-green leaves and an erect, leafless scape (flowering stalk), which bears at the top a pair of bract-like spathe valves joined by a papery membrane. From the pair of spathe valves a solitary, pendulous, bell-shaped white flower emerges, held on a slender pedicel. The flower consists of six tepals, also referred to as segments with the outer three being larger and more convex than the inner ones. The inner flower segments are usually marked on their outer surface with a green or greenish-yellow V- or U-shaped mark (sometimes described as "bridge-shaped") over the small sinus (notch) at the tip of each tepal. The inner surface has a faint green mark covering all or most of it. Occasionally plants are found with green markings on the outer surface of the outer tepals. The six long, pointed anthers open by pores or short slits. The ovary is three-celled, ripening into a three-celled capsule. Each whitish seed has a small, fleshy tail (the elaiosome) containing substances attractive to ants which distribute the seeds. The leaves die back a few weeks after the flowers have faded.

Plant Height 7cm to 15cm
Habitat Forests, Thickets, Clearings, Lawns, Gardens
Leaves Lanceolate
Leaf Margin Entire
Leaf Venation Parallel
Stems Smooth Stems
Flowering Season January to April
Flower Type Radially Symmetrical
Flower Colour White
Pollination Bees, Insects
Flower Gender Flowers are hermaphrodite and the plants are self-fertile
Fruit Soft white seeds
USDA Zone 3B (-34°C to -37°C) cold weather limit

The following health hazards should be noted when handling or choosing a location to snowdrops:

BIOHAZARD POTENTIAL

Snowdrops contain an agglutinin named Galanthus Nivalis Agglutinin (GNA) which shows damage to the intestines and immune systems of rats fed GNA.

TOXIC

The bulb of the snowdrop plant is mildly toxic.

-Click here- or on the thumbnail image to see an artist rendering, from Pinterest, (original source unknown) of snowdrops. (This image will open in a new browser tab)

-Click here- or on the thumbnail image to see a magnified view, from the Pacific Bulb Society, created by David Pilling, of the seeds created by snowdrops for propagation. (This image will open in a new browser tab)

Snowdrops can be referenced in certain current and historical texts under the following five names:

Snowdrops can be translated into the following select languages:

Arabic زهرة اللبن الثلجية Bulgarian кокиче Chinese (Sim) 雪花莲
Croatian Visibaba Czech Sněženka Danish vintergæk
Dutch Sneeuwklokje Esperanto   Estonian  
Finnish Lumikello French perce-neige German Schneeglöckchen
Greek Λευκόιο Hebrew שַׁלגִית Hungarian Hóvirág
Italian Bucaneve Japanese スノードロップ Korean 헌병
Punjabi   Lithuanian snieguolė Norwegian  
Persian   Polish Przebiśnieg Portuguese campânula-branca
Romanian ghiocel Russian Подснежник Slovak snežienka
Spanish Campanilla de febrero Swedish Snödroppe Tagalog  
Turkish Kardelen Ukrainian Пролісок Vietnamese cây tuyết điểm hoa

The information provided in this conservation assessment has been provided by the Natureserve Database in conjunction with various federal, provincial, state, county, district, regional, and municipal governments as well as public and private conservation authorities. Information in this section is accurate from the last time this article was updated.
Snowdrop has no conservation status as it is considered an exotic and or invasive species in North America.

The MIROFOSS database offers free printable garden tags for personal and non-profit use. These tags can be used to properly identify plant samples in a garden. Click on the tags shown on the the screen or -click here- to download a full size jpeg image for a snowdrop identification tag; which can be printed on paper or used with a plastic laser printer.

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Description Davis, Aaron P.; Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). The genus Galanthus. A Botanical magazine monograph. Timber Press. ISBN 978-0-88192-431-2.
Folklore Plaitakis, A., Duvoisin, R. C. (March 1983). "Homer's moly identified as Galanthus nivalis L.: physiologic antidote to stramonium poisoning". Clinical Neuropharmacology 6 (1): 1–5. doi:10.1097/00002826-198303000-00001. PMID 6342763
Commerical Use Gvaladze, G. E. (1983). "Ultrastructural study of Embryo Sac of Galanthus nivalis L.". In Erdelská, O. Fertilization and embryogenesis in ovulated plants. VII. International Cytoembryological Symposium, High Tatra (Račkova dolina), June 14–17, 1982. Bratislava: Centre of Biological and Ecological Sciences, Institute of Experimental Biology and Ecology, Slovak Academy of Sciences. OCLC 15866997
Image Rendering USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA NRCS. Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide to plant species. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Environment National Audubon Society. Field Guide To Wildflowers (Eastern Region): Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0-375-40232-2
Physical Identification National Audubon Society. Field Guide To Wildflowers (Eastern Region): Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0-375-40232-2
January 20, 2016 The last time this page was updated
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