Leucojum aestivum (summer snowflake)

Japanese name: スノーフレーク
Scientific name: Leucojum aestivum

[Overview]
A perennial 35–60 cm tall, growing in moist grasslands and wetlands in its native range.
It has an underground bulb 3–5 cm across.
The leaves are simple, basal, and band-shaped, about 30–40 cm long and 1.5 cm wide.
The leaves die back before summer, and the plant goes dormant.
The flower stalk grows to about the same height as the leaves and bears 3–5 flowers in an umbel-like cluster, hanging downward.
There are bracts at the base of the inflorescence.
The flowers are bell-shaped, 1.5 cm across, white with 6 petals, and the tips of the tepals have green spots.
The fruit is a berry.

[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed or by division.
Plants grown from seed take 4–5 years to flower.
The bulbs can be left in the ground without problem, but if they are lifted, dig them up after all the leaves have died back, dry them in the shade, and store them dry in a cool, shady place.
It prefers fertile, well-drained soil in sun to partial shade.
For potted plants, move them to a cool, shady place during dormancy; for plants in the ground, it is good to plant them under deciduous trees.
For potted plants, water thoroughly during the growing period when the soil surface dries, gradually keep them drier once the leaves begin to turn yellow, and withhold water during dormancy.
For plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
No fertilizer is particularly needed if base fertilizer has been applied.
There are no particular pests or diseases.

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