There’s nothing quite like a visit to see snowdrops to brighten up a dreary winter day.
Here in the Cotswolds we’re lucky enough to have several from mass displays to specialist collections.
So far, the 2019 winter has been fairly mild and the snowdrops are coming on apace. Do visit websites for updates on the displays as the peak time is difficult to predict and some gardens are already weeks ahead.
Also, check before travelling in case bad weather forces closure.
Colesbourne Park
If you’re looking for the rare and unusual, then Colesbourne Park is a must-visit garden.
The collection was started by Victorian plant-hunter Henry John Elwes – Galanthus elwesii is named after him – and developed by the current owners, Sir Henry and Lady Elwes.
Today, Colesbourne has around 250 different varieties, most of which are on display. The more unusual snowdrops are found in raised beds and the Spring Garden, while there are huge drifts of ‘S. Arnott’ and others through the woodland. Another feature of the garden is the blue lake.
Colesbourne Park, Colesbourne, is open every Saturday and Sunday from February 2 to March 3, 2019 from 1pm. Last entry is at 4.30pm. Admission is £8 for adults, free entry for children under 16. Dogs on a short lead are welcome. Teas are available.
Rodmarton Manor
The Arts and Crafts garden at Rodmarton Manor is possibly best known for its richly planted herbaceous borders but it also has a fine snowdrop collection.
There are around 150 different varieties, including many rare snowdrops and there are flowers from October to March.
The main display is in the next few weeks alongside winter aconites, hellebores, crocus and cyclamen.
Rodmarton Manor, Rodmarton, is open on February 3, 10, 14, and 17 from 1.30pm. Admission to the garden only is £7.50, £1 for children aged 5-15.
Cotswold Farm Gardens
Another Arts and Crafts garden set high up in the Cotswold countryside, Cotswold Farm Gardens has a collection that was started in the 1930s and has grown to 83 varieties.
Named clumps in the borders make it ideal for comparing different varieties and there are also bigger displays in the woodlands.
Other highlights are masses of winter aconites, early flowers in the bog garden and the Winter Step Garden that has been planted for colour and scent with dogwoods, hellebores, cyclamen and winter honeysuckle.
Cotswold Farm Gardens, on the A417, is open in aid of the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust on February 9 and 10 from 11-3pm. It is also open on Mondays February 4, 11, 18 and 25. Admission is £5 and there will be soup, teas and bulbs for sale.
Painswick Rococo Garden
Snowdrops have been a draw at this quirky garden since Victorian times. More than five million bulbs are naturalised in the woods and at the foot of the garden buildings.
The garden has 15 varieties, with the display mostly made up of the common Galanthus nivalis. Among the named varieties is G. ‘Atkinsii, discovered by James Atkins who lived in one of the estate cottages in the 1800s.
Painswick Rococo Garden, Painswick, is open daily 10.30-5pm, last admission 4.30pm until October 31.
Batsford Arboretum
Once the home of the Mitford sisters, Batsford Arboretum near Moreton-in-Marsh has a garden-like feel with its trees grouped to give a visual effect rather than by genus.
Snowdrops are naturalised in the grass and grouped in the spring border with hellebores and aconites. You can read about my recent visit here.
Beautiful views over the Cotswold countryside make Batsford ideal for a bracing winter walk.
Batsford Arboretum is open Mon-Friday 9-5pm and from 10-5pm on Sundays and Bank Holidays.
Cerney House
Snowdrops are the highlight of the winter woodland walk at this privately-owned garden where there are hundreds of naturalised bulbs.
The main flower garden and Walled Garden also have good displays of cyclamen and massed plantings of hellebores.
Cerney House starts its 2019 season on January 26 and will be open daily from 10-7pm until October 31.
Newark Park
Newark Park is one of the snowdrop gardens where the appeal is the size of the display rather than the rarity of the flowers.
The snowdrops are naturalised around the old hunting lodge and through woodland on the estate. There are also long-reaching views thanks to the sloping site.
The National Trust property re-opens on February 2 to show off its snowdrops.
National Garden Scheme
The National Garden Scheme is holding its fourth Snowdrop Festival in 2019 with more than 90 gardens open throughout England and Wales.
In the Cotswolds, Home Farm at Huntley will be open on February 10 from 11-3. There’s a one-mile woodland walk with long views and many spring flowers.
Trench Hill, at Sheepscombe, is open on February 10 and 17 from 11-5. Thousands of snowdrops, aconites and hellebores are some of the spring highlights.s
Slightly further afield but easily accessible from the Cotswolds, Elm Close, in Welford-on-Avon, is open on February 16 and 17, from 11-3.30. It has snowdrops, aconites, erythroniums and hellebores.
And the National Trust’s Lacock Abbey Gardens, in Wiltshire, opens for the NGS on February 23, from 10.30-5.30pm. The woodland garden has aconites, snowdrops, crocus and daffodils.
For more details on the Snowdrop Festival, visit the NGS website.
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