After all the snow and cold it is wonderful to see a glimmer of a spring bursting through.

Snowdrops are the first flowers of the year to peep through the cold soil. But the recent freezing snow and cold means they have been a little delayed this year in some places compared to previous years so if you haven't spotted any yet, watch out for them emerging this month and be warmed by the sight of carpets of white flowers.

In Bloom

Most people think of snowdrops as late winter flowering plants but the flowering season extends from early autumn to late spring, depending on the type of snowdrop.

The common Galanthus nivalis would generally flower at the start of February although milder winters in recent decades have seen them flower in January.

But it depends on the winter temperatures of the particular year, local climate and position – so this year the colder weather has apparently delayed them a little.

Paul Cumbleton, senior supervisor at RHS Garden Wisley, says: "We usually first notice snowdrops in any great numbers in January, with the peak of bloom being in February but going on into March. I would say, that the weather this year has delayed them just a little here at Wisley, but less so than in some other parts of the country."

What's in a name...

The flower is so special to some people that those who are passionate about it are known as galanthophiles after the Latin name for snowdrop, Galanthus.

Galanthus is derived from the Greek words 'gala' for milk and 'anthos' for flower, while nivalis is Latin for snow, so Galanthus nivalis, the name of the common snowdrop, translates as 'milk flower of the snow.'

It is considered that the snowdrop is not native to Britain but has become naturalised, although some disagree.

Snowdrops seem to be associated with monasteries and other religious centres and have religious significance. It is believed they were a symbol of purity. Before being known as the snowdrop, they were also known as Candlemass bells and fair maids of February, names which are associated with Candlemass day on February 2, which is usually the peak of the flowering season.

The Victorians gave meanings to flowers and to them the snowdrop symbolised 'hope'.

Species

There are 19 species of snowdrops in the wild and more than 700 cultivated varieties. The most common snowdrop is the Galanthus nivalis while another is the Galanthus nivalis Flore Pleno. A highly sought after unusual snowdrop is the Galanthus nivalis Viridapicis whose the outer petals are tipped green.

Stories

One legend tells how when Adam and Eve were banished from the garden of Eden, Eve started to cry and each teardrop was turned into a white tear-shaped Snowdrop.

A pub in Lewes, West Sussex is called The Snowdrop but not after the flower. On December 27, 1836, an avalanche of snow from a cliff fell onto a row of cottages and eight people died. The name of the pub commemorates the disaster.

Places to see snowdrops this season...

Enjoy a stroll through gardens and landscapes carpeted with snowdrops. Tread carefully though – you don't want to step on these delicate little flowers!

Here are just some of the places you can see snowdrops in and around the area. But because of this year's extremely cold weather, contact the garden in advance to check if they are out yet and avoid disappointment.

Gatton Park, Reigate

See the snowdrops at Gatton Park on four special open days. The 260 acres of Capability Brown landscape gardens are home to the Royal Alexandra & Albert School and open to the public on the first Sunday of each month and this month on two other days as part of the National Gardens Scheme Open Garden days.

Snowdrops can be found across the gardens but the most dramatic displays are in the Rock Garden and Japanese Garden.

Where: Rocky Lane, Reigate, RH2 0TD

Open: Sunday, February 7, 1pm – 5pm; Sunday February 14, 11am – 4pm for the National Garden Scheme; Wednesday, February 17, noon – 4pm for National Gardens Scheme; Sunday, Match 7, 1pm – 5pm

Cost: Adults £3.50, children free

Phone: 01737 649038

Web: www.gattonpark.com

Polesden Lacey, Great Bookham

Last year the gardeners at Polesden Lacey planted an extra 4,000 snowdrops along Lime Walk which you will see for the first time this year. You can also see displays in the Winter Garden.

Where: Great Bookham, RH5 6BD

Open: Gardens daily 10am – 4pm until Saturday, February 13; 10am – 5pm from Sunday, February 14

Cost: Adults £7, children £3.50

Phone: 01372 458203 (Infoline), 01372 452048

Web: www.nationaltust.org.uk/polesdelacey

Box Hill

Take a walk around Box Hill and search out the snowdrops. You will find clusters by the Stepping Stones – just watch where you're walking!

Where: Box Hill Road, Box Hill, Tadworth, KT20 7LB

Open: All year

Cost: Free

Phone: 01306 885502

Web: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-boxhill

Painshill Park, Cobham

Follow Painshill's Snowdrop Walk where you can see the two varieties grown in the park – Galanthus nivalis and Galanthus nivalis Flore Pleno which has an extra level of petals. The special Snowdrop Walk map will guide you along the historic route where on the way you will be able to admire the clusters of snowdrops. The best places to see them are by the Cascade, in front of the Mausoleum and at the beginning of the Historic Route.

Where: Portsmouth Road, Cobham, KT11 1JE

Open: Daily, 10.30am – 4pm until end of February, 10.30am – 6pm or dusk from March

Cost: Adults £6.60, children £3.85

Phone: 01932 868113

Web: www.painshill.co.uk

Chalk Lane, Epsom

Every year there is a wonderful display of snowdrops in the woods on either side of Chalk Lane, leading from Epsom up onto the Downs.

We owe their survival to Lady Sybil Grant, daughter of the Earl of Rosebery, who lived at the Durdans in Chalk Lane. Lady Sybil would gather snowdrops from the grounds at the Durdans every spring and sell them to raise money for disabled soldiers who had been wounded in the First World War.

The tradition began in 1932. The Epsom branch of the Lest We Forget Association, which works for disabled men and women from the Armed Forces, has been picking them ever since. You can buy these snowdrops from Bourne Hall in Spring Street, Ewell village where you will also be able to see some snowdrops in the woodland area.

Phone: Bourne Hall, 020 8393 9571

Winkworth Arboretum, Godalming

In 2008 the team at Winkworth Arboretum planted an extra 10,000 snowdrops to add to the thousands already there. Together with the carpet of early variety daffodils, they are a heartwarming sight.

Where: Hascombe Road, Godalming, GU8 4AD

Open: All year from dawn to dusk

Cost: Adults £5.50, children £2.80

Phone: 01483 208477

Web: www.nationalturst.org/winkwortharboretum

Claremont Landscape Garden, Esher

The highlight at Claremont Landscape Garden until May is the Camellia Terrace. Yet there is also an abundance of snowdrops and early daffodils. See the carpet of snowdrops in the small woodland area in the park.

Where: Portsmouth Road, Esher, KT10 9JG

Open: Tuesday – Sunday, 10am – 5pm

Cost: Adults £6, children £3

Phone: 01372 467806

Web: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/claremont

RHS Garden Wisley, Woking

Follow the Birds, Butterflies and Winter Beauty trail which will take you around Seven Acres, The Wild Garden and The Rock Garden, where the best drifts of snowdrops can be found at Wisley.

Where: Woking, GU23 6QB

Open: Daily; 10am – 4.30pm Monday to Friday, 9am – 4.30pm Saturday and Sunday, until the end of February; 10am – 6pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm Saturday and Sunday, from March

Cost: Adults £9.50, children £3

Phone: 0845 260 9000

Web: www.rhs.org.uk/Gardens/Wisley

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Kew's conservation zone at the back of the garden, a haven for flora and fauna, has been filled with snowdrops, while the Cumberland Mound is also home to them too. Both areas are planted with the variety Galanthus nivalis.

Meanwhile the Rock Garden boasts a large snowdrop collection where you'll find many other species, and you can also check out the Alpine House nearby.

Where: Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3AB

Open: Daily from 9.30am

Cost: Adults £13, children free

Phone: 020 8332 5000

Web:www.kew.org

Hampton Court Palace, East Molesey

Discover the snowdrops in the 20th Century Garden and the Wilderness.

The 20th Century Garden is a contemporary area featuring trees and shrubs in a peaceful and tranquil space. The Wilderness refers to a place to wander, rather than an uncultivated area of garden. There are more than one million various bulbs planted in the Wilderness alone and you can see the snowdrops out now.

Where: East Molesey, Surrey, KT8 9AU

Open: Informal gardens (including Wilderness) 7am – 6pm, formal garden 10am – 5.30pm

Cost: Gardens currently free

Phone: 0844 482 7777

Web: www.hrp.org.uk/HamptonCourtPalace

Wakehurst Place, Ardingly, West Sussex

Be greeted by a display of snowdrops as soon as you enter the grounds of Wakehurst Place, Kew's country garden in West Sussex. This natural woodland will lead you down from the entrance to the famous Millennium Seed Bank.

Where: West Sussex, RH17 6TN

Open: Daily from 10am

Cost: Adults £10, children free

Phone: 01444 894066

Web: www.kew.org/visit-wakehurst

Sheffield Park Garden, East Sussex

Snowdrops bloom throughout Sheffield Park Garden so take a walk around the 120-acre Capability Brown landscaped garden with its waterfalls, cascades and lakes.

Where: Sheffield Park, East Sussex TN22 3QX

Open: Weekends 10am – 4pm until Sunday, February 14; daily 10.30am – 5.30pm from Monday, February 15

Cost: Adults £7.70, children £3.85

Phone: 01825 790231

Web: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sheffieldpark

Nymans, Handcross, West Sussex

A carpet of snowdrops will adorn the Walled Garden. They bloom with the early daffodils to create and blanket of gold and white.

Where: Handcross, near Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH17 6EB

Open: Gardens Wednesday – Sunday, 10am – 5pm

Cost: Adults £8.50, children £4.30

Phone: 01444 405250

Web:www.nationaltrust.org.uk/nymans

Create your own snowdrop carpet...

Fancy creating your own snowdrop carpet?

The RHS has the following advice on growing snowdrops:

Most snowdrops are not fussy regarding soil conditions provided it does not dry out in summer. They would struggle in dry shallow soils over chalk.

While in growth snowdrops need good light but once the foliage dies back they do not mind being in shade, so deciduous woodland is ideal.

In the garden plant beneath deciduous shrubs but avoid planting them too close to evergreens that may rob them of spring sunshine.

Snowdrops do well in sparse grass but they do not thrive in vigorous turf. For the rock garden or a spot that gets more sun in summer try G. elwesii and the autumn flowering G. reginae-olgae. Plant bulbs about 7cm (3ins) deep and a few centimetres apart. Space further apart for more extensive planting.

One of the best opportunities to by different varieties from leading nurseries is at the RHS London Plant and Design Show.

Where: Horticultural Halls, Greycoat Street and Vincent Square, London

When: Tuesday, February 16, 11am – 7pm; Wednesday, February 17, 10am – 5pm

Cost: RHS members free, non-members £5 on day one, £3 on day two

Phone: Tickets line – 0845 612 1253, information – 020 7649 1885

Web: www.rhs.org.uk/shows-events/london/design10.asp

Note: Only adult and child prices and current season opening times as advertised on websites at time of going to press are stated for the purposes of this article. Contact venue for further prices and current information.

Acknowledgements:

With thanks to RHS Garden Wisley and Painshill Park for information about snowdrops.

Deborah Morris