As the dull days of late winter linger, many RHS Partner Gardens come alive with enchanting snowdrop collections, offering a much-needed dose of brightness and charm. Whether nestled beneath ancient trees, carpeting woodland floors or lining pathways with their nodding heads, these delicate white blooms transform garden landscapes into magical displays of natural beauty. We’ve rounded up a selection of gardens where you can enjoy delightful carpets of these cheerful favourites.
Dyffryn Gardens, Vale of Glamorgan
There are snowdrops to see from December through to March in this peaceful Edwardian garden just 20 minutes outside Cardiff. Discover mass plantings of Galanthus elwesii and G. nivalis throughout the garden, as well as many other snowdrop cultivars, with the best displays starting from early February. Over the past few years, visitors and local schools have helped plant more than 100,000 snowdrops at Dyffryn Gardens. Other winter highlights include early bulbs, scented winter shrubs, seasonal pot displays and the glasshouse, where there is always something exotic to see, even in the coldest months.
- Free days out for RHS members: open every day, except for 25 and 26 December
- Plan a visit to Dyffryn Gardens
Bodnant Garden, Conwy
Over the past decade, hundreds of thousands of snowdrops have been planted at Bodnant Garden. First to bloom are the unusual specimens found in the Winter Garden, followed by a carpet of common snowdrops, Galanthus nivalis, running from the Old Park meadow through the woodland garden to The Far End. Also in February, the scent of winter-flowering shrubs such as daphnes, Sarcococca and many varieties of Hamamelis fills the air. The first camellias bloom and, if the season is mild, the grand old Magnolia campbellii subsp. mollicomata may be in flower on the Terraces. Enjoy the sight of lilac Rhododendron ‘Praecox’ and many colourful hellebores all around the garden.
- Free days out for RHS members: open every day, except for 24–26 December
- Plan a visit to Bodnant Garden
Hever Castle & Gardens, Kent
From 12 February to 2 March 2025, follow the spectacular Snowdrop Walk through the grounds of Hever Castle, the childhood home of Anne Boleyn. Around 115,000 snowdrops have been planted in the gardens in the past few years, including some interesting cultivars in the Winter Garden, such as Galanthus ‘Colossus’, a giant of the snowdrop world at more than 20cm tall. These delicate flowers blanket the banks of the double moat surrounding the 700-year-old castle, with more drifts of snowdrops to delight you along Sunday Walk and Church Gill Walk. Meander through the rest of the extensive gardens and grounds to enjoy the early blossoms of camellias and quince, and the first daffodils of the season.
- Free days out for RHS members: Monday to Friday, 12 February to 14 November
- Plan a visit to Hever Castle & Gardens
Chippenham Park Gardens, Cambridgeshire
Impressive and vast displays of snowdrops and winter aconites create a sight to behold in February at Chippenham Park Gardens. Wander through a mass of Galanthus nivalis, both single and double cultivars, which have naturalised here over hundreds of years. Set around large lakes and ancient canals, the 40-acre formal and woodland gardens are resplendent with a succession of hellebores, cyclamen and iris, building to a crescendo of daffodils later in the season. Deliciously perfumed daphnes and viburnums scent the air at this time of year, while Betula utilis var. jacquemontii and the colourful stems of Cornus sanguinea and C. stolonifera provide further winter highlights.
Stowe, Buckinghamshire
Snowdrops are such an iconic feature of Stowe in late winter that they’re fondly known as ‘Stowedrops’ here. Not long after New Year’s Day, the first of these dainty delights brave the cold and by February, snowdrops carpet much of the 18th century landscape gardens, from Elysian Fields to the Sleeping Wood and Lamport Garden. For a garden designed mostly without flowers, there are a lot of snowdrops to see! Follow the seasonal ‘Stowedrop’ walk and take in picture-perfect views of the many monuments, temples and lakes along the way. As spring develops, you’ll also be able to spot cyclamen, aconites, hellebores and tulips.
- Free days out for RHS members: open every day
- Plan a visit to Stowe
The Lovell Quinta Arboretum, Cheshire
Scattered drifts of snowdrops light up the woodland walks through Lovell Quinta Arboretum in February and early March. The double snowdrop Galanthus nivalis ‘Flore Pleno’ blooms at the arboretum entrance, while naturalised clusters of the common snowdrop Galanthus nivalis are peppered across the arboretum and around the lake. Winter is also a perfect time to appreciate the skeletal silhouettes of deciduous trees and striking evergreen conifers in the arboretum’s extensive tree collection. There are veteran oaks, each more than 300 years old, early-flowering rhododendrons and conifer Cryptomeria japonica ‘Elegans’, with foliage that deepens to a glorious purple in winter. Take in the recently developed Winter Walk and enjoy the creamy mottled branches of Eucalyptus perriniana, alongside dogwoods, willows and birches.
Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire
Anglesey Abbey boasts a remarkable snowdrop collection, with more than 400 species and cultivars, including many that are rare or were discovered in the garden. Look out for Galanthus nivalis ‘Anglesey Abbey’, G. ‘Richard Ayres’, named after a former Head Gardener, and G. ‘Hobson’s Choice’, named after Thomas Hobson who, in the 17th century, transformed the derelict priory into the country house you see today. There are snowdrops to seek out across the gardens, with the best spots to enjoy them being the Winter Garden and Woodland Path. Discover even more seasonal delights in the beautiful Winter Garden, from the glossy bark of Prunus serrula to the fiery stems of dogwoods and the sweet winter scents of daphnes, sweet box and mahonias.
- Free days out for RHS members: open every day, 24 and 25 December excluded
- Plan a visit to Anglesey Abbey