How To Grow Snowdrops In Your Garden?
Snowdrops will bloom in the spring or the late winter. You can plant them alone or in bunches or even with other bulbs that bloom around the same time.
These flowers can grow in colder weather and are not high-maintenance flowers. It’s a little hard to get them to grow in warmer weather, but it is possible if your area gets cold fronts sometimes and it also loves the shade, so this is a perfect winter plant for your garden.
While this flower is white, it still comes in many different varieties. You can find short ones and tall ones and they also grow with double flowers and single flowers. Some of them even have patterns on their petals.
Their leaves vary from grey to green; some are stubby and thick while others are thin and long.
With the different varieties some will clump- faster than others and some slower. Some grow better planted in the ground while others grow better in pots.
WHERE CAN YOU PLANT SNOWDROPS?
First off they need to be planted somewhere that drains really well, in a moist type of soil, usually underneath shrubs or a tree. If you don’t have shrubs or trees in your yard then plant them on the shady side of your home.
When spring ends the bulbs will “sleep” (be dormant) and there will be no trace of them above ground.
HOW TO PLANT THEM
Decide where you want to plant the snowdrops then turn over the soil, making sure all the weeds are gone and any rocks too. To have a better chance at beautiful snowdrops you might want to add in some compost during this time to make the soil a little richer.
You need to dig out a hole about ten – inches deep. You’ll need about five – inches of the soil in between the soil level and the very top of the bulb. The bulb will need to be planted with the flat side down. Cover it with soil and pat it down. Make sure to give it plenty of water.
If you are planting them in the ground and you want a patch of them to cover an area then you’ll need to plant fifteen – twenty of them and make sure you space them four – five – inches apart.
Now if you are wanting to plant them in pots just remember that you might not get as many flowers and the pot needs to have a lot of holes for it to drain properly. You’ll also need to make sure that you get a soil that drains well.
CARING FOR YOUR SNOWDROPS
These plants are super easy to take care of. You need to weed the garden area regularly but be extremely careful no0t do disturb the bulbs. They hardly ever need watering, so make sure you water them only if the soil dries out a lot. If you have them in pots you may need to water those more often during the hot months.
For the bulbs to live through the winter months you will need to fertilize them with plant food so they will come back the following year. They will need one dose of plant food or for you to water routinely with liquid food for plants. Also, if you will use a fertilizer that is rich in potassium every ten – to – twelve days until the leaves start to turn yellowish then it will encourage healthy growth.
The last thing is that you will need to lay down some mulch during the fall season. It enriches the soil to give the bulbs more nutrition.
PRUNING SNOWDROPS
Since these are not a high maintenance plant, there is no need in pruning. Just let them fade on their own. Once the leaves have turned yellow then you may cut away any of the leaves if you like.
DO THE BULBS NEED WINTER PROTECTION?
No, they do not if they are panted in the ground. They don’t need to be lifted, just add the mulch during the fall season, that alone can protect them from extreme cold. Don’t forget to rake the mulch away from the soil at the start of the year because this promotes new growth.
If you have the snowdrops planted in tubs or containers then these may need to be covered with a blanket. This can keep the soil from freezing.
CAN MY SNOWDROPS BE PROPAGATED?
These plants do not spread in a garden by setting seeds. They actually multiply from producing offsets which are new bulbs being grown on the mother bulb. In a few years they will get too dense and you will be able to break the clumps apart and plant them somewhere else.
If you find that your bulbs are rising above the ground then it’s telling you that it’s too crowded. The ones that are closest to the top by the surfaced, these are the ones that are the newest. If you do not divide these clumps up and replant them then they will break up and grow roots from wherever they are, so it’s best that you replant them where you want them. You’ll want to wait though, until the flowers have died but while the foliage is still green. Make sure that you replant them immediately after you separate them.
DEALING WITH PROBLEMS & PESTS
As stated, these plants are extremely low maintenance which also includes any problems or pests. They pretty much have no pest troubles as even mice and deer stay away from them.
If you have any problems at all it will probably be grey mold or too much moisture if they have been planted in an area that doesn’t drain well or with soil that doesn’t drain well.
This guide should be all you need to successfully plant and care for your snowdrops. Once you have -planted yo0ur snowdrops they don’t need much attention at all. Just sit back and enjoy their beauty once they start blooming. The only maintenance they really need is making sure the bulbs survive through the winter and that doesn’t take much effort at all.
