Country diary: These flowers of public ritual are full of wild beauty

Attingham, Shropshire: Although they all seem more or less the same, snowdrops have subtle nuances of shape and colourGalanthophile: an enthusiastic acolyte, processing, dog attached, in the rites of spring, with an occult knowledge, enchanted, gathering photographs of woods whitewashed with snowdrops. Galanthus (milk flower) is the botanical genus containing about 20 species of snowdrops native to Europe and the Middle East. From only a few species grown widely there are hundreds of named varieties to excite the galanthophiles. At Attingham Park, signs say that there are only two types of snowdrops flowering in the wood: Galanthus elwesii - the larger snowdrop that ranges from Ukraine across Turkey into Syria; and Galanthus nivalis, Flore Pleno - a double-flowered form of the common snowdrop found throughout Europe, except the far north. This double form has a funky little flower with a muddle in the middle of its petal-like structure and bits missing. Continue reading...