Galanthus reginae-olgae ‘Blanc de Chine’

One of the first snowdrops to open their excellent, bright white flowers every year is Galanthus reginae-olgae 'Blanc de Chine'. It is characterized by the fact that the markings on the inner petals are reduced to tiny green dots or are even completely absent. Although the expression is technically not entirely correct, collectors speak of an albino. In fact, however, this is not an albino in the strict sense, but just a snowdrop with extremely reduced spots on the inner petals. Galanthus reginae-olgae 'Blanc de Chine' usually begins to bloom as early as September. This is typical of Galanthus reginae-olgae from the Taygetos Mountains, a mountain range on the Peloponnese peninsula in Greece. It was named by Joe Sharman, a well-known English snowdrop expert. The term "Blanc de Chine" refers to a white porcelain that was mainly produced in the 17th and 18th centuries in Dehua in the Chinese province of Fujian.