Why do some plants flower in winter, how is this advantageous

A. Plants such as dog’s mercury, Mercurialis perennis, which flowers from February to April and the snowdrop, Galanthus nivalis, which flowers from January to March, grow in deciduous woodland.

Although winter might not seem like a good time to flower if they did it in spring, when most other plants choose to flower, then the forest floor, where they grow, is heavily shaded by the newly emerging leaves.

Q. Having flowered, the snowdrop then has to survive the harsh winter, how does it do it

A. Snowdrops are one of the earliest spring flowers.

First of all they need to be able to penetrate hard snow covered ground. They do this with the aid of a tough leafy layer, called a spathe, which covers the tip of each flowering stem.

Then, having made it through, they survive even the harshest British winter, thanks to their own in built antifreeze.

Q. But what are the advantageous for winter flowering plants that don't grow on the forest floor

A. For other plants, winter flowering is advantageous for different reasons. The hazel plant, which produces catkins, flowers in winter, is pollinated via wind borne pollen. If the hazel flowered during another time of the year, when the plant is thick with leaves, they would form a barrier, preventing pollination.

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by Lisa Cardy