Latin name: Galanthus nivalis. Flowers January to March in damp woodland and riverbanks. According to legend snowdrops first appeared when Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden, to a land where it was winter: cold, snowy, and barren. An angel consoled them by promising that, even here, spring would follow winter. As a token, he blew upon some falling snowflakes which, as they touched the ground, were transformed into snowdrops. In this way, Hope was born. Ever since then, snowdrops have appeared during the bleakest winter weeks as a sign of the better times to come.

Location: Lydiard Park, Swindon, Wiltshire

Photographer: Anna Stowe