Summer Snowflake Bulbs (Leucojum aestivum)

The Summer Snowflake (Leucojum aestivum), also known as the Loddon Lily after the River Loddon in Berkshire, is a tall and elegant bulb that is easy to mistake for an outsized snowdrop. Each stem carries several pure white, bell-shaped flowers, each petal tipped with a neat green spot, above strap-like dark green leaves. It reaches around 50cm and flowers from March into May — later and taller than its snowdrop relatives, despite the name.

This is a plant for damp ground. It thrives in moist to wet soils beside ponds, ditches and streams, in wet meadows and along moist woodland edges, and will tolerate ground that floods for short periods in winter. It is equally at home in a damp border. Once established it is long-lived and forms substantial clumps that need little attention.

Plant in autumn, September to November, at roughly three times the depth of the bulb — around 10–15cm for these large 8–9cm bulbs — and 10–15cm apart in soil that stays reliably moist. Full sun or partial shade both suit it provided the ground is damp. Leave the foliage to die back naturally after flowering.

Supplied as dry bulbs, 8–9cm size, for autumn planting. It is widely regarded as a UK native of wet woodland and riverbanks, particularly in the Thames valley, where it is known as the Loddon lily.