Shepton Snowdrops

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Shepton Snowdrops

A project from Shepton Mallet, Somerset, UK to commemorate James Allen (1830 - 1906)

Shepton Mallet, in the heart of Somerset, was home to James Allen, an amateur horticulturist and the first person ever to breed new varieties of snowdrop from wild plants - a feat which earned him the nickname of the 'Snowdrop King'

The Snowdrop Festival is a vibrant not-for-profit community project to plant Shepton Mallet with hundreds of thousands of snowdrop bulbs, and to restore the Allen family memorial in the town's cemetery, in order to celebrate James Allen's and town's place in gardening history

10/09/2026

Our 2027 Photography Competition is OPEN! 🎉

This year’s theme: TREES & THEIR LANDSCAPE 🌿

And who better to judge your images than legendary landscape photographer Charlie Waite?

He says "Look beyond simply photographing a tree; look at its surroundings and the light that reveals its character.

What drew you to a particular tree? What is it saying within the landscape? Strength or fragility? Solitude or companionship? Permanence or renewal?

Is it the intricate detail of bark, elegance of a single branch, or the way mist, rain or early morning light transforms an ordinary scene into something memorable."

📣 Open to all photographers, from anywhere in the world!�⏰ Deadline: 11pm, 10 January 2027
🔗 Enter now: sheptonsnowdrops.org.uk/competitions/2027-photography-competition/

22/08/2026

BIG NEWS! 📸

We’re absolutely thrilled to announce that Charlie Waite - Official Page one of the world’s most celebrated landscape photographers, has agreed to judge the 2027 Shepton Snowdrop Festival Photography Competition.

This is a huge honour, and we couldn’t be more delighted 🤩

The 2027 theme will celebrate trees and the landscapes they shape. From majestic veteran trees to quiet woodland scenes, rolling countryside and hidden corners waiting to be discovered.

Full competition details will be announced soon, but don’t wait to get started. The perfect photograph could be waiting for you this autumn, winter or next spring.

So grab your camera and start shooting now, the closing date will be in early 2027.

20/08/2026

Now’s the time to start planning for autumn bulb planting! 🌱

What will you be planting this September?

Here in Shepton Mallet, we’ve already ordered tens of thousands of snowdrop bulbs ready for planting. And by the time they’re in the ground, we’ll have planted well over half a million (!) snowdrops across the town.

We can’t wait to see them burst into flower next spring 🤍

18/08/2026

2027 Shepton Snowdrop Festival News! 📣

We’re delighted to announce that Charles Dowding will be returning to the festival.

A pioneer of modern no dig gardening and organic soil management, Charles was one of the highlights of our last festival. His talk at Kilver Court filled the ballroom, with a waiting list for tickets!

We’re thrilled to welcome him back in 2027. More programme announcements coming soon 👀

17/08/2026

A huge congratulations to Neil Turner of the Shepton Mallet Horticultural Society, who was awarded the James Allen Memorial Prize at the Mid Somerset Show yesterday for these beautiful dahlia blooms🏆🌺

The prize commemorates the legacy of James Allen, the Snowdrop King, who was on the management committee of the much earlier Shepton & East Somerset Horticultural Society’s Flower Show back in the 1860s!

What a wonderful connection to Shepton’s rich horticultural heritage, and what a spectacular display of dahlias.

Congratulations, Neil, and thank you for helping to keep this wonderful tradition alive 👏

13/08/2026

As part of the 2027 Shepton Snowdrop Festival, we’ll be celebrating the historic snowdrops found in local churchyards, including those at St Peter and St Paul in Shepton Mallet and the church at Chantry, where beautiful displays can still be seen today.

For centuries, snowdrops have been closely associated with churchyards. They were traditionally grown for Candlemas on 2 February, while the Victorians planted them as symbols of purity, hope and new beginnings.

Long before the Reformation, in the days of the great abbeys, monks cultivated snowdrops to treat mal au tête—“ailments of the head”—adding another fascinating chapter to the story of this remarkable flower.

12/08/2026

Truth or legend? 🌱❄️

According to Greek myth, the snowdrop was the first flower to appear when Persephone returned from the Underworld, bringing life back to the earth after the long, dark winter.

One day, while gathering flowers, Persephone was seized by Hades, the God of the Underworld, who carried her away to his realm.

In her absence, crops failed, fruit trees stopped bearing, and nature across Greece fell into decline until Zeus, king of the gods, negotiated her return for half of each year.

Each time Persephone returned to the Underworld, winter gripped the earth once more. According to legend, the snowdrop was among the first flowers to appear when she returned, becoming a symbol of hope, renewal and the coming of spring.

10/08/2026

In Homer’s epic The Odyssey, now adapted into a major film, Odysseus and his men are bewitched by the sorceress Circe, who may have used a poisonous plant such as mandrake or deadly nightshade (belladonna).

Odysseus alone is protected by a mysterious herb with a “flower like milk”, which restores his clarity of mind and shields him from Circe’s magic.

Could this be one of the earliest recorded references to the snowdrop as a medicinal plant? 🌱

If so, it would suggest that snowdrops were growing in ancient Greece thousands of years ago.

Address

Shepton Mallet

Website

http://www.sheptonsnowdrops.org.uk/

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