First Snowdrops!
I’m interrupting the posts about Japan to report some breaking news from our garden: our first Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis) are blooming!
It’s just one small patch of Snowdrops that, for some reason, seems to serve as scouts for all the rest – checking to see if it’s safe to come out. The remaining bulk of the Snowdrops are just now emerging from soil.
This is, I think, the earliest I’ve seen Snowdrops in bloom. I’m too lazy to keep a garden journal, but Judy’s photographs provide a photographic record. Looking back at old pictures, I can see that the first Snowdrops bloomed around February 28th in 2016. In 2015 and 2014, they first flowered around March 15th.
Nothing else looks even close to blooming at the moment, not even the Hellebores.
It’s a pleasure to see these early blooms, even if the specter of climate change lurks in the back of my mind.
gardeninacity 
My snowdrops are up too. 3 batches like yours. I’m in central Indiana. My hellebores all have blooms beginning but nothing has opened yet. Due to the crazy warm weather everything else is coming up way too early – tulips, lilies, irises, even the magnolia and redbud trees are showing buds. It’s just too soon.
You’re a bit ahead of us on things budding out. This weekend I’ll cut the dead foliage off the Hellebores.
Wonderful, so good to hear that your snowdrops have arrived, from now on it will just get better!
Traditionally, winter can make a sudden return in Chicago as late as early April.
So lovely! Happy springtime to you!
Same to you!
Breaking news of the best kind 🙂
Very true.
Glad you have some flowers at last. De aspire our very cold December and January or because of it I’m seeing lots of early bulb growth.
Aside from the Snowdrops I’m seeing only a few tips of Daffodil leaves. But maybe I’ll see more this weekend.
My daughter’s snowdrops, planted on the south side of her house, began to bloom a couple of days ago.
They bring a song to the heart.
Snowdrops (that I never planted) are also up in my yard, but mine aren’t as lovely as yours are. Like you, I’m surprised yours are blooming so early. Think Punxsutawney Phil is wrong this year? (Yep, I did have to look up how to spell “Punxsutawney.”)
It’s just a very early spring. I just hope we don’t have a late freeze to kill off all the flower buds.
No, it is my pleasure to see them. 🙂
They are a pleasure to see, especially as they herald the end of winter.
Mine are just poking up but at least a week or so earlier than last year, too.
We had some hail last night but the Snowdrops didn’t seem to mind. By the way, Linda, I think my comment on your blog might have gone into the spam folder.
They can’t come soon enough for me, but we still have quite a bit of snow on the ground.
Everything here should be frozen again by tomorrow, though no snow cover to speak of.
Isn’t it fabulous to have a nice clump of Snowdrops to lift our spirits and prepare our winter weakened eyes for the big blooms of summer.
Fabulous indeed.
I share your excitement, Jason; mine just started this weekend too – very early but more than welcome!
Enjoy!
This weather is crazy! I love it, but it’s so unusual that it has me a little scared–I hope we won’t have another drought this summer. I also worry about the plants getting too far along and then freezing. I don’t have anything blooming yet, but some of the little spring bulb plants are poking through. Believe it or not, Olbrich had Snowdrops blooming in January! Mine are in the shade, so they take a little longer. Happy almost-spring!
Same to you! A late hard freeze this year would be too cruel!
lucky guy – nothing over here yet. Just checked yesterday – absolutely nothing…
They will come! I thought Berlin had a more mild climate than Chicago.
Not always. The Atlantic North Sea cooks up pretty rough weather in the west, and if the cold comes from the other side, it is with icy wind greetings directly from Moscow.
Yay! In Maine, we just have snow. And lots of it. 😉
I hope you can still enjoy it. If not, it won’t last forever.
What a joy to see those snowdrops! The daffodils are not too far behind although Iris Reticulate seems quite late this year, for some reason.
I don’t have I. reticulata, but aren’t they usually one of the first to bloom? I really love the light blue ones.
Daffodils and irises are sending up new leaves. Even the wild grasses are greening. But no blooms. I’m just wondering when the snow is going to hit us. Warm weather followed by freezing is the reason I do not grow forsythia.
Your comment reminds me that this would be a good time to cut some Forsythia and bring it inside!
Yes, early blooming is here and due to climate change. SOO happy that our new president is advocating expansion of fracking and other fossil fuels. Just what we need.
I know, I know. But I remind myself that giving into despair only makes things worse. It’s heartening to see all the resistance that has emerged since the election.
Snowdrops beat snowflakes…no more of those, please.
We may get a few snowflakes this weekend. It’s turned cold again.
Snowdrops are medicine for the eyes in the depth of Winter. Hooray for those tiny white gems
Indeed!
I need to plant some of those! pretty:-)
Very easy, too!