A PICTURESQUE park dubbed ‘England’s greatest snowdrop garden’, has once again opened its gates to show off its world-renowned collection.

Colesbourne Snowdrop Weekends 2017 started on the first weekend of February and will run until the first weekend in March.

The collection at Colesbourne Park originated in the plantings made by Henry John Elwes at the end of the 19th Century, after he discovered Galanthus elwesii – a species of giant snowdrop – while travelling in western Turkey in 1874.

He planted the snowdrops widely, as the garden contains large populations, many of them hybrids, descended from those plantings.

The present day collection, and the magnificent swathes of varieties, such as ‘S. Arnott’ and G.plicatus ‘Colossus’ are the result of the renewed interest of Lady Carolyn and Sir Henry Elwes, who have devoted a lot of time to replanting and expanding the groups.

In recent years this has been carried on by aboriculturist and leading snowdrops expert John Grimshaw and gardeners Arthur Cole and Will Fletcher, who plant thousands of snowdrops each year.

New varieties are added every year, with the collection now totalling some 250 varieties, though not all are on display.

John will give a special talk as part of a snowdrop study today, along with US-based galanthophile Ernest Cavallo.

He wrote the monographs ‘Snowdrops’ and ‘New Trees’ and many other horticultural papers, as well as being a writer for the Royal Horticultural Society’s ‘The Garden’.

Visit colesbournegardens.org.uk for more information.