Feb 23, 2019
Plant of the Day
Saturday 23 February 2019
The flowers of Crocus tommasinianus (early crocus, woodland crocus, snow crocus) provide an early source of vital pollen and nectar for foraging bees in late winter. This species flowers early and can easily become naturalised in borders and lawns and will spread by self-sowing. There are a number of cultivars including Crocus tommasinianus f. albus, which has white flowers. In my garden they flower in the lawn with the Galanthus (snowdrops) and here at Hodsock Priory, Nottinghamshire, they had naturalised in this border at the base of a sunny wall. The bees had flown in from some examples of historic hives in the garden.
Jill Raggett
