Galanthus elwesii ‘Ruth Birchall’

A handsome, late-flowering Galanthus elwesii with grey-green foliage and good-sized, neatly formed flowers. The inner segments carry a distinctive green heart-shaped marking, giving the flowers an immediately recognisable character. A relatively tall and substantial snowdrop, flowering towards the latter part of the elwesii season.

Named for Ruth Birchall, the noted Gloucestershire galanthophile whose enthusiasm helped establish the important snowdrop collection at Cotswold Farm. Ruth began building the collection in the 1970s and greatly expanded it from the 1980s onwards; her collection eventually contained more than 60 named varieties. The snowdrop named in her honour is described as one of the later-flowering forms in the garden, where it is particularly associated with its greyish foliage.

Ruth Birchall was part of the generation of British galanthophiles who exchanged plants extensively with other collectors and gardens; her name also appears in the provenance of historic snowdrops now grown in major collections such as Colesbourne.

Nomenclature: Galanthus elwesii ‘Ruth Birchall’
Synonym: Galanthus ‘Ruth Birchall’
Hardiness: H6, –20 to –15°C
Height: 15–20 cm
Spread: 10–15 cm
Flowers: February–March
Marking: Green, heart-shaped inner segment marking
Named for: Ruth Birchall, Gloucestershire galanthophile