Rhodoxis hybrida Fairy Snow

Rhodoxis Fairy Snow is a small perennial native to South Africa that gradually spreads to form a lovely groundcover. Its linear foliage, reminiscent of snowdrops, is covered with a profusion of small white star-shaped flowers. These abundant flowers completely cover the foliage and bloom repeatedly from spring to autumn. Vigorous but sensitive to cold, this plant thrives in rockeries in mild climates or in pots to be protected during winter. It prefers a sunny position and a non-calcareous soil, rich in humus and well-drained.

This Fairy Snow cultivar is the result of a hybridisation between a Rhodohypoxis and a Hypoxis. For this reason, it is also known as Rhodohypoxis Fairy Snow. It was awarded the bronze medal at the KVBC Spring Challenge. All these plants belong to the small family of Hypoxidaceae, which are mainly found in the Southern Hemisphere. Rhodohypoxis are plants with small fleshy rootstocks that form charming little very floriferous clumps. Rhodoxis Fairy Snow develops rapidly into a dense and vigorous carpet, about 15cm high and 30cm in diameter. Its small star-shaped flowers appear en masse from May to October, almost hiding the slender green leaves covered with short silky hairs. After flowering, the clump completely disappears until the following spring. The bulb goes into dormancy.

Native to the meadows of South Africa, where summers are hot and rainy but winters dry, rhodoxis or rhodohypoxis are rather sensitive to cold. Therefore, you cannot leave them outdoors all year round, unless winter temperatures do not fall below -6 to -8 °C. In less temperate regions, it is easy to grow them in pots, so that they can be brought under cover during the cold season, always ensuring excellent drainage and watering sparingly. They will then need to be divided and repotted regularly.

In the garden or in pots, in rockeries or borders, Rhodoxis Fairy Snow goes with, for example, dwarf agapanthus such as 'Double Diamond' or 'Golden Drop', Eucomis Freckles or Armeria juniperifolia which is evergreen and provides presence in winter. Other bulbs, like grape hyacinths or Iris reticulata, which are early, help extend the flowering period in a small exotic scene.