James Allen (1830 – 1906), known as the "Snowdrop King," was a nurseryman and galanthophile of Shepton Mallet, Somerset, United Kingdom, known principally for his hybridizations of snowdrops and anemones. He is credited with the discovery of Galanthus ×allenii (1883).
Allen spotted Galanthus ×allenii amongst a batch of bulbs that had been imported from the Caucasus. Originally classed as a species, this strongly scented snowdrop is now thought to be a hybrid. It is described as being "intermediate in appearance between G. caucasicus [ now G. elwesii var. monostictus ] and G. ikariae", and may be a natural hybrid between those species.
References
Further sources
Bulbs, Roger Phillips and Martin Rix, Pan Macmillan (1989) RHS Plant Finder 2008–2009, Tony Lord (editor), Dorling Kindersley (2008)
External links Shepton Snowdrop Festival