View source for Galanthus

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==Overview==
'''''Galanthus''''' ('''snowdrop'''; Greek ''gála'' "milk", ''ánthos'' "flower") is a small [[genus]] of about 20 [[species]] of [[bulb]]ous [[herbaceous plant|herbaceous]] perennials in the [[Amaryllidaceae|Amaryllis family]].<ref>{{cite web |author=P. F. Stevens |year=2001 onwards |title=Angiosperm Phylogeny Website: Asparagales: Amaryllidoideae |url=http://www.mobot.org/mobot/research/apweb/orders/asparagalesweb.htm#AllAma}}</ref> Most flower in winter, before the [[vernal equinox]] (20 or 21 March in the [[Northern Hemisphere]]), but certain species flower in early [[spring (season)|spring]] and late [[autumn]].

Snowdrops are sometimes confused with the two related genera within [[Galantheae]], snowflakes ''[[Leucojum]]'' and ''[[Acis (plant)|Acis]]''.

==Description==

All species of ''Galanthus'' are perennial, herbaceous plants which grow from [[bulb]]s. Each bulb generally produces just two or three linear leaves and an erect, leafless [[Scape (botany)|scape]] (flowering stalk), which bears at the top a pair of bract-like [[spathe]] valves joined by a papery membrane. From between them emerges a solitary, pendulous, bell-shaped white flower, held on a slender [[Pedicel (botany)|pedicel]]. The flower has no petals: it consists of six [[tepal]]s, the outer three being larger and more convex than the inner series. The six anthers open by [[stoma|pores]] or short slits. The ovary is three-celled, ripening into a three-celled capsule. Each whitish seed has a small, fleshy tail (elaiosome) containing substances attractive to [[ant]]s which distribute the seeds.<ref>[[#Bishop|Bishop, Davis & Grimshaw (2002)]], p. 7.</ref> The leaves die back a few weeks after the flowers have faded.

The inner flower segments are usually marked with a green, or greenish-yellow, bridge-shaped mark over the small "[[Sinus (botany)|sinus]]" (notch) at the tip of each tepal.

An important feature which helps to distinguish between species (and to help to determine the parentage of hybrids) is their "[[vernation]]" (the arrangement of the emerging leaves relative to each other). This can be "applanate", "supervolute" or "explicative". In applanate vernation the two leaf blades are pressed flat to each other within the bud and as they emerge; explicative leaves are also pressed flat against each other, but the edges of the leaves are folded back or sometimes rolled; in supervolute plants one leaf is tightly clasped around the other within the bud and generally remains at the point where the leaves emerge from the soil.<ref>[[#Bishop|Bishop, Davis & Grimshaw (2002)]], pp. 1–2.</ref>

Notable species include:
* Common snowdrop, ''[[Galanthus nivalis]]'', grows to around 7–15&nbsp;cm tall, flowering between January and April in the northern temperate zone (January–May in the wild). Applanate vernation<ref name="BDG_p17">[[#Bishop|Bishop, Davis & Grimshaw (2002)]], p. 17.</ref>
* Crimean snowdrop, ''Galanthus plicatus'', 30&nbsp;cm tall, flowering January/March, white flowers, with broad leaves folded back at the edges (explicative vernation)
* Giant snowdrop, ''Galanthus elwesii'', a native of the [[Levant]], 23&nbsp;cm tall, flowering January/February, with large flowers, the three inner segments of which often have a much larger and more conspicuous green blotch (or blotches) than the more common kinds; supervolute vernation
* ''Galanthus reginae-olgae'', from [[Greece]] and [[Sicily]], is quite similar in appearance to ''G. nivalis'', but flowers in autumn before the leaves appear. The leaves, which appear in the spring, have a characteristic white stripe on their upper side; applanate vernation
** ''G. reginae-olgae'' subsp. ''vernalis'', from Sicily, northern Greece and the southern part of former Yugoslavia, blooms at the end of the winter with developed young leaves and is thus easily confused with ''G. nivalis''.

==Taxonomy==

The genus was created by [[Carl Linnaeus]] in 1753, based on the [[type (biology)|type]] species ''[[Galanthus nivalis]]''.<ref name=WCSP/> ''Galanthus'' is from the [[Greek (language)|Greek]] ''gala'', meaning "milk", and ''anthos'', meaning "flower", alluding to the colour of the flowers. The epithet ''nivalis'' means "of the snow".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hyam |first=R. |last2=Pankhurst |first2=R.J. |year=1995 |title=Plants and their names : a concise dictionary |publication-place=Oxford |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-866189-4 |lastauthoramp=yes }} pp. 202, 342.</ref>

===Similar genera===

Snowdrops are sometimes confused with the two related genera that constitute the [[Galantheae]], snowflakes or ''[[Leucojum]]'' and ''[[Acis (plant)|Acis]]'' . ''Leucojum'' are much larger and flower in spring (or early summer, depending on the species), with all six [[tepal]]s in the flower being the same size, though some "poculiform" (goblet- or cup-shaped) ''Galanthus'' can have inner segments similar in shape and length to the outer ones.

===Species===

{{As of|2012|February}}, the ''World Checklist of Selected Plant Families'' recognises 19 species.<ref name=WCSP>{{cite web |title=World Checklist of Selected Plant Families |publisher=The Board of Trustees of the [[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]] |url=http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/home.do |accessdate=2012-02-03}}, search for "Galanthus"</ref> A 20th species, ''Galanthus panjutinii'' (Panjutin's snowdrop), was recognised during 2012. Discovered in five locations in a small area (estimated at 20&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of the northern [[Colchis]] area (western [[Transcaucasus]]) of [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] and [[Russia]], it is classed as Endangered. One of its five known sites, at Sochi, was destroyed by preparations for the 2014 Winter Olympics.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kew.org/plants-fungi/Galanthus-panjutinii.htm|title=Kew website: ''Galanthus panjutinii'' (Panjutin's snowdrop)|accessdate=8 February 2013}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=21em}}
*''[[Galanthus alpinus]]'' <small>Sosn.</small> - [[Turkey]], [[Caucasus]]
*''[[Galanthus angustifolius]]'' <small>Koss</small> - [[Caucasus]]
*''[[Galanthus cilicicus]]'' <small>Baker</small> - [[Turkey]]
*''[[Galanthus elwesii]]'' <small>Hook.f.</small> - [[Greece]], [[Balkans]], [[Ukraine]], [[Turkey]]
*''[[Galanthus fosteri]]'' <small>Baker</small> - [[Turkey]], [[Syria]], [[Jordan]]
*''[[Galanthus gracilis]]'' <small>Celak.</small> - [[Greece]], [[Balkans]], [[Ukraine]], [[Turkey]]
*''[[Galanthus ikariae]]'' <small>Baker</small> - [[Aegean Islands]] ([[Andros]], [[Ikaria]], [[Naxos]], [[Skyros]])
*''[[Galanthus koenenianus]]'' <small>Lobin</small> - [[Turkey]]
*''[[Galanthus krasnovii]]'' <small>Khokhr.</small> - [[Turkey]], [[Caucasus]]
*''[[Galanthus lagodechianus]]'' <small>Kem.-Nath.</small> - [[Caucasus]]
*''[[Galanthus nivalis]]'' <small>L.</small> - southern + central [[Europe]] from [[Pyrenees]] to [[Ukraine]]
*''[[Galanthus panjutinii]]'' <small>Zubov & A.P.Davis</small> - [[Caucasus]]
*''[[Galanthus peshmenii]]'' <small>A.P.Davis & C.D.Brickell</small> - southwestern [[Turkey]], [[Greek islands|Greek Island]] of [[Kastellorizo]] ([[Megisti]])
*''[[Galanthus platyphyllus]]'' <small>Traub & Moldenke</small> - [[Caucasus]]
*''[[Galanthus plicatus]]'' <small>M.Bieb.</small>  - [[Caucasus]], [[Turkey]], [[Ukraine]], [[Crimea]], [[Romania]]
*''[[Galanthus reginae-olgae]]'' <small>Orph.</small> - [[Greece]], [[Sicily]], [[Balkans]]
*''[[Galanthus rizehensis]]'' <small>Stern</small> - [[Turkey]], [[Caucasus]]
*''[[Galanthus transcaucasicus]]'' <small>Fomin</small> - [[Iran]], [[Caucasus]]
*''[[Galanthus trojanus]]'' <small>A.P.Davis & Özhatay</small> - [[Turkey]]
*''[[Galanthus woronowii]]'' <small>Losinsk.</small> - [[Turkey]], [[Caucasus]]
{{div col end}}
==Distribution and habitat==

The genus ''Galanthus'' is native to Europe and the Middle East, from Spain, France and Germany in the west through to Iran in the east. It has become naturalized in other parts of Europe – Norway, Sweden, Great Britain, Belgium and the Netherlands – as well as in eastern Canada and the United States.<ref name="WCSP_307509">{{Cite web |title=''Galanthus''|work=[[World Checklist of Selected Plant Families]] |publisher=[[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]] |url=http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?name_id=307509 |accessdate=2014-05-18}}</ref>

''Galanthus nivalis'' is the best-known and most widespread representative of the genus ''Galanthus''. It is native to a large area of Europe, stretching from the Pyrenees in the west, through France and Germany to Poland in the north, Italy, Northern Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine and European Turkey. It has been introduced and is widely [[Naturalisation|naturalised]] elsewhere.<ref>[[#Davis|Davis (1999)]], pp. 95–96.</ref> Although it is often thought of as a British native wild flower, or to have been brought to the British Isles by the Romans, it was probably introduced around the early sixteenth century and is currently not a protected species in the UK.<ref name="BDG_p17"/>

Most other ''Galanthus'' species are from the eastern Mediterranean, though several are found in southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.<ref>[[#Bishop|Bishop, Davis & Grimshaw (2002)]], pp. 17–57.</ref> ''Galanthus fosteri'' comes from Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey and maybe Israel.<ref>[[#Bishop|Bishop, Davis & Grimshaw (2002)]], p. 40.</ref>

==Conservation==

Some snowdrop species are threatened in their wild habitats, and in most countries it is now illegal to collect bulbs from the wild. Under [[CITES]] regulations, international trade in any quantity of ''Galanthus'', whether bulbs, live plants or even dead ones, is illegal without a CITES permit. This applies to hybrids and named cultivars as well as species. CITES does, however, allow a limited trade in wild-collected bulbs of just three species (''G. nivalis'', ''G, elwesii'' and ''G. woronowii'') from Turkey and Georgia.<ref>[[#Bishop|Bishop, Davis & Grimshaw (2002)]], p. 341–343.</ref>

==Cultivation==

===Snowdrop gardens===
Celebrated as a sign of spring, snowdrops can form impressive carpets of white in areas where they are native or have been naturalised. These displays may attract large numbers of sightseers. There are a number of snowdrop gardens in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.greatbritishgardens.co.uk/snowdrops.htm |title=Great British Gardens: Snowdrops and Snowdrop Gardens 2007 |accessdate=11 March 2007}}</ref> Several gardens open specially in February for visitors to admire the flowers. Sixty gardens took part in Scotland's first Snowdrop Festival (1 Feb–11 March 2007).<ref>{{cite web |url= http://white.visitscotland.com/snowdrops/ |title=VisitScotland.com: Snowdrop Festival |accessdate=11 March 2007 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070303112955/http://white.visitscotland.com/snowdrops/ <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 3 March 2007}}</ref> Several gardens in England open during snowdrop season for the [[National Gardens Scheme]] (NGS) and in Scotland for Scotland's Gardens.

===Cultivars===
There are numerous single- and double-flowered [[cultivars]] of ''Galanthus nivalis'', and also of several other ''Galanthus'' species, particularly ''G. plicatus'' and ''G. elwesii''. There are also many hybrids between these and other species (there are more than 500 cultivars described in Bishop, Davis & Grimshaw's book, plus lists of many cultivars that have now been lost, and others not seen by the authors). They differ particularly in the size, shape and markings of the flower, the period of flowering, and other characteristics, mainly of interest to the keen (even fanatical) snowdrop collectors, known as "[[galanthophile]]s", who hold meetings where the scarcer cultivars change hands.<ref>[[#Bishop|Bishop, Davis & Grimshaw (2002)]], p. 329</ref> Double-flowered cultivars and forms, such as the extremely common ''Galanthus nivalis'' [[Form (botany)|f.]] ''pleniflorus'' 'Flore Pleno', may be less attractive to some people but they can have greater visual impact in a garden setting.

The following species and cultivars have gained the [[Royal Horticultural Society]]'s [[Award of Garden Merit]]:-
{|
|- valign=top
|
*''G.'' 'Atkinsii'<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus'' 'Atkinsii'|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=828|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
*''G. elwesii''<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus elwesii''|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=829|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
*''G. elwesii'' [[variety (botany)|var.]] ''monostictus''<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus elwesii'' var. ''monostictus''|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=2999|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
*''G.'' 'Magnet'<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus'' 'Magnet'|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=2999|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
* ''[[Galanthus nivalis|G. nivalis]]''<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus nivalis''|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=830|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
|
*''G. nivalis'' f. ''pleniflorus'' 'Flore Pleno'<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus nivalis'' f. ''pleniflorus'' 'Flore Pleno'|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=3001|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
*''G. plicatus''<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus plicatus''|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=3002|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
*''G.'' 'S. Arnott'<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus'' 'S. Arnott'|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=831|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
*''G. woronowii''<ref>{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - ''Galanthus woronowii''|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=5185|accessdate=20 June 2013}}</ref>
|}

A list of Irish cultivars can be found here [http://www.snowdropinfo.com/irishsnowdrops.htm]

===Propagation===
Propagation is by offset bulbs, either by careful division of clumps in full growth ("in the green"), or removed when the plants are dormant, immediately after the leaves have withered; or by seeds sown either when ripe, or in spring. Professional growers and keen amateurs also use such methods as "[[twin-scaling]]" to increase the stock of choice cultivars quickly.

==Active substances==
It was suggested by Andreas Plaitakis and Roger Duvoisin in 1983 that the mysterious magical herb [[Moly (herb)|moly]] that appears in [[Homer]]'s [[Odyssey]] is actually snowdrop. An active substance in snowdrop is called [[galantamine]], which, as [[anticholinesterase]], could have acted as an antidote to [[Circe]]'s poisons.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Andreas Plaitakis & Roger C. Duvoisin |year=1983 |title=Homer's moly identified as ''Galanthus nivalis'' L.: physiologic antidote to stramonium poisoning |journal=Clinical Neuropharmacology |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=1–6 |pmid=6342763 |doi=10.1097/00002826-198303000-00001}}</ref> Galantamine (or galanthamine) can be helpful in the treatment of [[Alzheimer's disease]], though it is not a cure;{{citation needed|date=May 2012}} the substance also occurs naturally in [[daffodil]]s and other [[Narcissus (genus)|narcissi]].{{citation needed|date=May 2012}}

Snowdrops contain also an active [[lectin| lectin or agglutinin]] named GNA for ''Galanthus nivalis'' agglutinin.<ref>Hester G et al. (1995) [http://www.nature.com/nsmb/journal/v2/n6/abs/nsb0695-472.html Structure of mannose-specific snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) lectin is representative of a new plant lectin family]  Nature Structural Biology  2, 472 - 479</ref>

In 1995 [[Árpád Pusztai]] [[genetic engineering|genetically modified]] potatoes with the GNA gene, which work he discussed on a radio interview in 1998<ref name = "Randerson">{{cite news|url=http://education.guardian.co.uk/egweekly/story/0,,2240547,00.html| title=Árpád Pusztai: Biological Divide – James Randerson interviews biologist Árpád Pusztai |publisher=The Guardian|date=15 January 2008 | location=London | accessdate=25 April 2010}}</ref> and published in the Lancet in 1999.<ref name="Lancet">{{cite journal |author=Ewen SW, Pusztai A |title=Effect of diets containing genetically modified potatoes expressing Galanthus nivalis lectin on rat small intestine |journal=Lancet |volume=354 |issue=9187 |pages=1353–4 |date=October 1999 |pmid=10533866 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(98)05860-7 |url=}}</ref> In 1998 said in an interview on a [[World in Action]] programme that his group had observed damage to the intestines and immune systems of rats fed the genetically modified potatoes. He also said  "If I had the choice I would certainly not eat it", and that "I find it's very unfair to use our fellow citizens as guinea pigs".<ref name = "Randerson" /> These remarks started the so-called [[Pusztai affair]].

==In popular culture==
* In the fairy-tale play ''The Twelve Months'' by Russian writer [[Samuil Marshak]], a greedy queen decrees that a basket of gold coins shall be rewarded to anyone who can bring her galanthus flowers in the dead of winter. A young orphan Girl is sent out during a snow storm by her cruel stepmother and find the spirits of the 12 months of the year, who take pity on her and not only save her from freezing to death, but make it possible for her to gather the flowers even in winter. The [[The Twelve Months (1956 film)|Soviet traditionally animated film ''The Twelve Months'' (1956)]], [[Lenfilm]] film [[The Twelve Months (1972 film)|''The Twelve Months'' (1972)]] and the anime film [[Twelve Months (1980 film)|''Twelve Months'' (1980)]] (''Sekai meisaku dowa mori wa ikiteiru'' in Japan) are based on this fairy-tale play.
* "Snowdrops" was the nickname that the British people gave during the [[World War II|Second World War]] to the [[military police]] of the [[United States]] Army (who were stationed in the UK preparatory to the invasion of the continent) because they wore a white helmet, gloves, gaiters, and [[Sam Browne belt]] against their olive drab uniform
* The short story ''The Snowdrop'' by [[Hans Christian Andersen]] follows the fate of a snowdrop from a bulb striving towards the light to a picked flower placed in a book of poetry.
* In ''[[Stardust (2007 film)|Stardust]]'', a glass snowdrop is given to Dunstan for a kiss by Una. It's later used to protect Tristan from the magic of Lamia.
* In the musical ''[[Kiss Me, Kate]]'' by Cole Porter (1948) the character Lilli/Katherine is deeply pleased at receiving a pre-opening night performance bouquet of "pansies, snowdrops, and rosemary.  Our wedding bouquet," from her ex, Fred/Patruchio.  But--the bouquet was meant for the younger, [[Ingenue (stock character)|ingenue]] lead, Lois/Bianca.

==See also==
* [[List of early spring flowers]]
* [[Galantamine]]

==References==

{{Reflist|2}}

===Bibliography===
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book |author=Matt Bishop, Aaron Davis, John Grimshaw |year=2002 |title=Snowdrops: a Monograph of Cultivated Galanthus |publisher=Griffin Press |isbn=0-9541916-0-9 |ref=Bishop}}
*{{cite book |author=Aaron Davis |year= 1999 |title=The genus ''Galanthus'' |series=A ''Botanical Magazine'' monograph |publisher= Timber Press |location=Portland, Oregon |isbn=0-88192-431-8 |ref=Davis}}
*[http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1055790313002194 Snowdrops falling slowly into place: An improved phylogeny for Galanthus (Amaryllidaceae).Nina Rønsted, Dimitri Zubov, Sam Bruun-Lund, Aaron P. Davis. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution Volume 69, Issue 1, October 2013, Pages 205–217]
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book |author=F. C. Stern |year=1956 |title=Snowdrops and Snowflakes – a study of the genera ''Galanthus'' and ''Leucojum'' |publisher=[[Royal Horticultural Society]]}}

==External links==
*{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16789834 |publisher=[[BBC News]] |title=Snowdrop fanciers and their mania |author=Denise Winterman |date=February 2, 2012}}
*[http://www.ngs.org.uk/gardens/gardenfinder.aspx National Gardens Scheme website]

{{Commons category|Galanthus nivalis}}
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[[Category:Amaryllidaceae genera]]
[[Category:Flowers]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants]]
[[Category:Amaryllidoideae]]