Yes, the snow was delightful, but three weeks of snow cover was far too long. The thick crust of frozen sleet over six inches of snow delayed its melting, but finally, after days of milder temperatures and rain there are only a few scattered icy remnants that refuse to retreat in this shaded garden.

Snowdrops (Galanthus) that began flowering just before the snow are again showing a glimpse of color. Winter aconites (Eranthus, above) in a slightly sunnier spot in the rear garden raced into bloom as the snow melted.

Without the prolonged cover of snow the Christmas rose  hellebores (Helleborus niger, above) would have faded by now, but flowers emerged looking fresh, as if they opened yesterday. Several other hellebores are flowering (below), and dozens of others will begin to bloom in the next week.

Try as I might to favor less common witch hazels, I find ‘Arnold Promise’ (Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Arnold Promise’, below) to be the best of the lot in this garden. Undoubtedly, a large part of this favoritism is due to my colorblindness that clearly sees the bright yellow while red (‘Diane’) and orange (‘Jelena’) flowers are seen only upon close examination. I look forward to increased flowering of ‘Wisley Supreme’ that has been recently relocated into a sunnier position.

While other varieties sprawl, ‘Arnold Promise’ grows in an upright conical form that stands above its neighbors. An aged ‘Arnold’ was lost when its location became overly saturated with abnormally high rainfall, but in slightly drier ground nearby, another has grown vigorously. Two in shadier positions grow more slowly, but also flower heavily.

An overly shaded Chinese witch hazel (Hamamelis mollis) was transplanted with no flower buds in early winter. In its new position it will have brief glimpses of sunlight. I hope for a few flowers next winter to help identify the variety.