Summer Snowflake (Leucojum aestivum) - white flowers, illustrated plant cardIllustration

Summer Snowflake

Leucojum aestivum

Summer Snowflake blooms from April through May.

Bloom calendar
Bloom time
Apr–May
not yet checked
Hardiness
Zones 4–9
not yet checked
Sun
Part sun
not yet checked
Water
Moderate water
not yet checked
Mature size
20 in × 5 in
not yet checked
Type
Bulb
house classification

Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.

Growing Summer Snowflake

Plant it in part sun. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 4–9. Expect it to reach about 20 in tall and 5 in wide at maturity, in roughly 1 year (not yet checked).

Verification
What this means

Written with AI assistance and not yet checked plant by plant against recorded sources, so treat every fact above as a starting point. Its scientific name was checked against botanical registries, an audit keeps its values consistent with the rest of the library, and a July 2026 review re-read the main facts of every plant then in the library against horticultural authorities without recording a source for each, which is why none of that counts as checked here. The source-by-source check is working through the whole library in the open, and a checked plant says so in this row.

When to plant Summer Snowflake

Summer Snowflake is a fall-planted bulb: get it in the ground 6 to 8 weeks before the ground freezes, typically September or October in zone 6, the middle of its hardy zones 4 to 9. It pays you back the following April to May.

Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 6, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 6 in September. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.

How big does Summer Snowflake get?

Illustration of Summer Snowflake drawn to scale beside an adult20 intall5 ft 7 inan adult5 inwide
About 20 in tall and 5 in wide at maturity: knee-high beside an adult.

See Summer Snowflake in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.

Good to know about Summer Snowflake

Curated from university extensions, botanic gardens and other primary sources, with the source named on every note.

Safety

All parts are poisonous if eaten, and the bulbs hold the most poison. Toxic to humans, dogs, cats and horses, causing vomiting and stomach pain. per NC State

The Snowflake group

One of 4 in the Snowflake group. Same genus, similar care.

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Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.

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