Scottish snowdrop festival set for return
Pretty displays across area
The Scottish Snowdrop Festival will return to Perthshire in the coming weeks.
The garden and woodland celebration will take place from Thursday, February 1, until Monday, March 11, brightening up estates across Perthshire and neighbouring Angus.
Organisers have said that dozens of events will take place this year to mark the annual snowdrop bloom.
From trails through mossy glades and guided walks in gardens that have been turned white with flowers, the festival offers a chance to enjoy nature as the first stirrings of new life return.
Organised by Discover Scottish Gardens, the festival will be hosted in four locations across the county.
Cloan Garden in Auchterarder will be open to the public on Sunday, February 11, from 11am until 3pm, with proceeds from tickets going to Scotland’s Gardens Scheme.
The two-acre wild garden is expected to have thousands of snowdrops covering the ground.
Branklyn Garden in Perth will be open to snowdrop enthusiasts on Sunday, February 18.
The grounds at Scone Palace cover 100 acres and snowdrops are spread throughout the woodlands and across the designed landscape and on Saturday, February 24, there will be a special Snowdrop Day, when members of the public will be invited to come along and help to lift, divide, and re-plant the bulbs.
It has been billed as a chance to learn from the experts about how best to cultivate snowdrops and, in return, volunteers will be given some bulbs to take home.
Meanwhile a Snowdrop Trail will lead visitors through the best areas of the display, from Friar’s Den, through the Victorian Pinetum and along the main driveway, passing some of Scone’s most historic sites along the way.
And set around Cluny House, Aberfeldy, is one of the finest woodland gardens in Scotland and conditions there are perfect for snowdrops to flourish.
They grow alongside Giant Redwoods, Douglas Firs and other soaring trees. The garden is open daily from 9am-6pm.
Locations in Broughty Ferry, Forfar, Arbroath, Inverkeilor and St Cyrus are also involved with the festival.
Full details of all the events taking place as part of the Scottish Snowdrop Festival can be found by visiting www. discoverscottishgardens.org.