Galanthus ‘Robin Hood'

A piece of classic galanthophile history, and one with a slightly complicated family tree. ‘Robin Hood’ was first mentioned by James Allen in 1891, and is generally regarded as an old hybrid involving G. elwesii and G. plicatus. However, the identity of the plant originally grown under the name is far from certain, with early illustrations differing from the clone cultivated today.

The modern material is said to descend from plants grown by E. A. Bowles and bulbs he passed to R. D. Trotter, father of Elizabeth Parker-Jervis. This provides an intriguing link between the historic James Allen snowdrop and the form that survives in cultivation today.

A tall, upright and particularly elegant snowdrop, with narrow grey-green foliage and brilliant white flowers. The inner segments carry a very distinctive green marking, broadly X-shaped and often likened to two crossed sabres. A splendid old-fashioned snowdrop with considerably more history than its modest stature might suggest.

Nomenclature: Galanthus ‘Robin Hood’; generally treated as a hybrid cultivar, often placed under Galanthus × hybridus.

• Hardiness: H5
• Height: 20–30 cm
• Spread: 10–15 cm
• Flowers: January–February