Specieswatch: Snowdrop

The Flower of Hope or common snowdrop, Galanthus nivalis, is showing itself in gardens and will soon be attracting visitors to woodlands and churchyards, where these first flowers of spring can grow in carpets of white. When it occurs in such profusion in Britain it is hard to believe that this bulb is variously classed as a critically endangered species, vulnerable or threatened in half a dozen European countries. But these classifications apply to the snowdrop in its native habitat. Left unmol...