February Blooms.

I missed GBBD this year which is on the 15th of the month . But I ca n’t permit the month go by without lionise some of the pretty and most fragrant blooms of the year . The honorable , the most gorgeous , the most fragrant , the most dainty , plus all the superlatives you’re able to recollect of , is the queen of the garden , Daphne bholua‘Jacqueline Postill ’ . The scent all around her would make you faint .

Daphne bholua‘Jacqueline Postill ’

There are other winter- flowering daphnes , for instanceDaphne odora‘Aureomarginata ’ smells godly too . But it does n’t have the people of flowers that Jacqueline sports and it is a low grow bush whereas Jacqueline raise to from 6 to 12 fundament grandiloquent ; mine is about 6 pes at the second and I worship every inch of her . The only drawback to these blue blood of the garden is that they can sustain from sudden and incomprehensible death .

Daphne bholua‘Jacqueline Postill’

Daphne odora‘Aureomarginata ’

There is even a little native woodland daphne which range up all over my garden uninvited . I reserve it to stay though because it is utilitarian for tad , it has glossy , evergreen plant leaves and somewhat little peak in wintertime .

Daphne laureola

Daphne bholua ‘Jacqueline Postill’

Daphne bholua‘Jacqueline Postill’

I have been excessive in my kudos of ‘ Jaqueline Postill ’ , but I also have a gorgeous , small , February - bloom tree which is expensive , but well deserving damp into the piggy bank for . It is stunning with dark carmine - pink , fragrant blossom . It is the Japanese Apricot , Prunusmume‘Beni - chidori ’ .

Prunus mume‘Beni - chidori ’

Whilst we are speak about wintertime -flowering trees I have to include the daintyfloweredPrunus subhirtella autumnalis‘Rosea ’ which is a routine of a mouthful for such a prettily unproblematic flower . It is very long - hold out and I much opt it to the blowsy , pink- knicker efflorescence of the outpouring - flower cherry trees such as the awful ‘ Kanzan ’

Daphne odora ‘Aureomarginata’

Daphne odora‘Aureomarginata’

Prunus autumnalis subhirtella‘Rosea ’ a unadulterated friction match forViburnum bodnantense

There are lovely shrubs in bloom now too . Most of us have the fragrant wintertime -flowering meeting house . I have several include thisLonicera x purpusii‘Winter Beauty ’ .

Lonicera x purpusii‘Winter Beauty ’

Daphne laureola

Daphne laureola

In my eyes , even more beautiful , is the rather rarefied , Lonicera elisae . It has foresighted , tubular flowers which are just tinged with pink .

Lonicera elisae

Many of the Witch Hazels which revel us through the winter have finished flowering now . For some intellect myHamamelis x intermedia‘Pallida ’ which should be long gone , is very late bloom this year , so I still have the pleasure of its adorable primrose yellowed flowers .

Prunus mume ‘Beni-chidori’

Prunus mume‘Beni-chidori’

Hamamelis x intermedia‘Pallida ’

Hamamelis x intermedia‘Arnold Promise ’ is always the last one to bloom and it extends the witch hazel season .

Hamamelis x intermedia‘Arnold Promise ’

Prunus autumnalis subhirtella ‘Rosea’ with Viburnum bodnantense

Prunus autumnalis subhirtella‘Rosea’ a perfect match forViburnum bodnantense

Catkins are looking lovely at the moment . I have a endearing black salix which has flushed -anthered disgraceful ament which start off wait like black claw . It is calledSalix melanostachys .

Salix melanostachyswithAbies koreana

All the winter - flowering beauties convey off to a slow head start this twelvemonth . The diminutive , but perfectly formedNarcissusminor‘Cedric Morris ’ is often in prime for Christmas , or former January at the latest . This year it waited until early February and is still looking adorable now .

Lonicera x purpusii ‘Winter Beauty’

Lonicera x purpusii‘Winter Beauty’

Narcissus minor‘Cedric Morris ’

As it is so late , it is overlapping with early daffs such as the January - flowering ‘ Rijnveld ’s Early Sensation ’ .

Narcissus‘Rijnveld ’s Early Sensation ’

Lonicera elisae

Lonicera elisae

Pretty little ‘ Spring Dawn ’ is always other in February .

Narcissus‘Spring Dawn ’

As it is February I have to refer the ‘S ’ word , but I will try and make it snappy as I cognise slew of blogger think snowdrops are quite pretty , but basically , just little bloodless bells which are well looked aten masse , rather than loom over compulsively . Even as a galanthophile I retrieve there are too many introductions that are so interchangeable that you take a magnifying glassful to tell them apart . If you raise plenty ofGalanthus elwesiiyou will witness slew of variations . Even the commonGalanthus nivalishas pregnant variations . As my garden is very old , I have carpets of snowdrop . Amongst thenivalisI have found a diminutive one with a long bent pedicel like a small ‘ attractive feature ’ and I have find some with green on the outer petals which look a variety of‘viridipice’ . I even have a green tipped one with recollective bunny ears likeGalanthus sharlockii .

Lonicera elisae

Lonicera elisae

OK , stop yawning at the back there , I will just show you some really classifiable one and then we will say no more about them until next yr .

Being a total snowdrop anorak , I have a pile of Greatorex doubles , but to be good those Shakespearian heroine and their chums all look likewise . My pet is ‘ Washfield Titania ’ which came from Elizabeth Strangman ’s wonderful baby’s room .

Galanthus‘Washfield Titania ’

Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Pallida’

Hamamelis x intermedia‘Pallida’

There are some endearing white-livered snowdrops , that is ones with yellow ovaries and marking . My favourites are ‘ Madelaine , ’ ‘ Wendy ’s Gold ’ and ‘ Spindlestone Surprise ’

Galanthus‘Madelaine ’

Galanthus‘Spindlestone Surprise ’

Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Arnold Promise’

Hamamelis x intermedia‘Arnold Promise’

Some Anemone quinquefolia have very distinctive grading , likeGalanthus‘Two Eyes ’ .

Galanthus‘Two Eyes ’

‘ Robin Hood ’ and ‘ Little John ’ both have a distinctive crossbreed .

Saalix melanostachys with Abies koreana

Salix melanostachyswithAbies koreana

Galanthus‘Robin Hood ’

And then there are the desired snowdrops with green markings on their flower petal . I have ‘ Trymlet ’ and ‘ Corrin ’ .

Most of theGalanthus plicatushybrids are late flowering and so still to come . One that blooms now is the delightful ‘ Augustus ’ , named after E.A.Bowles . It has lovely plump flush .

Narcisssus minor ‘Cedric Morris’

Narcissus minor‘Cedric Morris’

Galanthus plicatus‘Augustus ’

For embonpoint snowdrop flowers , they do n’t amount any plumper than ‘ Diggory ’ . I just sleep with the unmistakable Diggory with his seersucker flower petal . For all those of you who think all snowdrops look alike , just look at him .

Galanthus‘Diggory ’

Narcissus ‘Rijnveld’s Early Sensation’

Narcissus‘Rijnveld’s Early Sensation’

Another snowdrop which is quite typical and shortly propagate to make lovely carpets isGalanthus woronowii , it has shiny , apple green leaves .

Galanthus woronowii

Right , enough with the snowdrop , I have delighted you long enough , as you might remember Mr Bennet say to his daughter Mary , when she show no sign of terminate playing the piano any sentence that day , inPride and Prejudice . Like Mary , I could go and on about snowdrops , but I wo n’t .

Narcissus ‘Spring Dawn’

Narcissus‘Spring Dawn’

But I will just mention lovelyLeucojum vernumwhich looks a flake like a wood anemone but is n’t . The blossom are like little lamp shade or pyxie hat if you have a whimsical turn of mind . The tips of the flowers are green .

you may get one with yellowed peak calledLeucojum vernumvar.carpathicum . If you calculate cautiously at the next picture you will see that some of the flowers are everlasting white with no colour on the tips at all . I found one single flower like this and grew it on . I shall weed out the ones with thin colouration on their bakshish and hopefully I will shortly have a sizeable clump of pure white-hot single .

Leucojum vernum

I have n’t even started on the hellebore . And trust me , I am a hellebore dullard . But I will spare you the comment , I will just make a gallery of some of them .

There have been Clarence Day when I have n’t felt like give-up the ghost into the garden . But whatever the weather condition the blooms of February are a constant reservoir of delight . The aconites are beginning to go over now but they are being replaced by ever more crocuses open up up . short reticulated irises andCyclamen coumare everywhere . I think another heading will show them off best .

57 Responses toFebruary Blooms.

If you had n’t mentioned your wood anemone , I ’d have been pertain that something was seriously incorrect with you . Although I do n’t have a chance in sin of turn them myself , I ’ve come to appreciate the differences ( pernicious and not ) between them . You grow so many things I ca n’t ; however , you have me taking a second facial expression at the Daphnes – there is one species ( D. odora ) that is enounce to grow in my clime , which I might just take a hazard and try should I discover it locally . This wandering center is a side effect of the bountiful rain we ’ve had this winter , I ’m afraid , a sort of madness probably .

I ’m feeling most golden as a friend has recently given me a cutting of daphne bholua ‘ Jacqueline Postill ’ which I will treasure . No flowers this twelvemonth but I ’m looking forward to swoon before long 🙂 As always I enjoyed gazing at your fabulous snowdrops . I ’m with you about the proliferation of indistinct snowdrop intro . ‘ Diggory ’ stay on my pet . Your new winter garden is really knit together now – you must be delighted with it .

P.S. I forgot to require what is the plant growing behind Galanthus woronowii ? It look intimate but I ca n’t put a name to it .

Galanthus ‘Washfield Titania’

Galanthus‘Washfield Titania’

Some beautiful snowdrop and hellebore ( amongst other lulu ) which encourage us out in less than contributing horticulture weather . Thank you for sharing ( I am rather jealous of your beautiful garden … I only have a small-scale thin Victorian bench back garden . I would love more hellebore but I can always enjoy yours instead!)Best wishesEllie

Our Daphne JP die all of a sudden when I was Cliffe , it was tragic , I blamed overweening moisture at the roots but I know they do suddenly lurch over . Have you stress Daphne retusa ? Whilst not quite as adorable as herself , it is a dainty , tidy plant , which sounds swooning praise but is not intend to be . One more doubtfulness , do you have a name for the hellebore bottom course , 2d from the left wing ? I may have fall in love … . 🙂

I , for one , like to take about your snowdrops . Thank you .

Galanthus ‘Wendy’s Gold’