Antirrhinum x majus Fresh White - Gueule de loup, Gueule de lion, Muflier des Jardins, Muflier à grandes fleurs

The Antirrhinum majus F1 Opus III/IV 'Fresh White', a flowering plant better known as Snapdragon, stands out for its generous flowering and decorative appeal both in the garden and in vases. This horticultural selection is part of the Opus III/IV series developed specifically for cut flower cultivation. Its long, sturdy stems adorned with brilliant white flowers bloom all summer until the first frosts, adding verticality and elegance to flower beds. Beyond its irresistible visual appeal, this annual plant also attracts pollinating insects, thus contributing to biodiversity in your garden. Its versatility mens that it can be grown both in open ground and in pots on a bright terrace. In mild climates, it may even survive from year to year, though it is generally treated as an annual.

Formerly classified in the Scrophulariaceae family, the Snapdragon now belongs to the Plantaginaceae alongside many other ornamental plants. Genera such as Linarias (Toadflaxes), Foxgloves, or Speedwells are thus highly prized for landscaping and private plots. Native to Mediterranean regions, the Antirrhinum majus, sometimes called Common Snapdragon, grows in in the limestone and arid areas of the southern Europe and is even capable of colonising old walls. It is also found elsewhere in Europe as well as in Western Asia and Northern Africa. This species appreciates bright exposures without excessive direct sun, as well as soil that is poor in organic matter but rich in mineral elements.

Thanks to the work of horticultural developers, there are varieties in professional production on the market specially dedicated to cut flowers, which also delight amateur gardeners. This is the case with the Opus III/IV range which comes in cultivars of different colours, all well suited to flower arrangement making. Sow the 'Fresh White' in spring, four to six weeks later depending on your climate; you can then plant them out and approximately 100 to 110 days after sowing, you can enjoy their immaculate flowering. The plant forms a clump of lanceolate, alternate or opposite leaves of a beautiful deep, relatively dark green which offers a remarkable contrast with the light inflorescences. This Snapdragon produces large flowering stems in the form of spikes ranging from 60 to 80 cm in height. Over a good third of their length or more, they are covered with flowers of the iconic shape that evokes a mouth opening when the petals are pressed together sideways, hence its common name. Measuring about 3 cm, the flowers have an elongated tubular, bilabiate corolla with rounded lobes, and are of a virgin whiteness. They renew themselves all summer, from early June to late September, often even until the first frosts. Besides their beauty with a quite romantic charm, they delight pollinating insects, particularly bees, thus combining utility with ornament. The flowering stems should be cut very low if harvested to create vase arrangements of striking beauty, which emit a light fragrance.

This Snapdragon 'Fresh White' lends itself to many combinations in flowerbeds: paired with Cosmos or Old Roses, it creates a rural and romantic scene. Summer flowering Scabious will be just as perfect companions. For your cut flowers, they offer a vertical and luminous structure which you can enhance by combining them with pink or red Peonies. The contrast will then be total, both in terms of colours and graphics, thus mixing vertical spikes with large cup-shaped blooms.

WARNING: thes seeds would be best sown by very experienced gardeners accustomed to sowing very fine seeds. These seeds are as fine as dust, barely visible to the naked eye.