Snowdrops - so many varieties, who knew?

Such a delight to see, the first sign that spring is on its way.

We have a lot of snowdrops in our garden, some single, some double. They clump up so tightly, I try to divide and spread the clumps as they finish flowering each spring. The doubles don't seed, but seem to spread more successfully. The singles develop seed heads which fall over, plant themselves and grow.

Intrigued by the idea of many varieties of snowdrops, went out in the sun one morning in early February and took a closer look at our single and double snowdrops with camera and mirror. So close to the ground it's easy to overlook the delicate complexity of the flowers, which are a welcome source of early pollen and nectar for bees.