A guide to Hvar's wildflowers - Spring edition

A beautiful overview of Hvar's rich springtime flower offerings by Marion Podolski.

Brilliant poppies on Hvar in springtime. Brilliant poppies on Hvar in springtime. Photo: Vivian Grisogono

Marion reports:

I’ve been inspired this spring to get outside and learn more about Hvar’s plantlife. I see local folks using flowers and leaves in  drinks, in cooking, as insect repellants, balms and of course to flavour various rakijas! At the same time, we’ve also been watching a wonderful Croatian TV series called Lovac na bilje, which is to say, The Plant Hunter.  Each week, we watched Anton Rudan hike through glorious countryside, chatting to local experts and telling us about some of the special plants there and how they can be used. Fascinating stuff!

The sun colours flowers and art colours life!

The sun colours flowers and art colours life!

So for the last few weeks I’ve been diligently taking photos of as many flowers as I could find among the paths and byways, sometimes in fields or by the beach. And as part of my explorations, I’ve even had a go at painting some of them! My next step, of course, is to identify each one, and tag my photos with an official name in Latin, English and Croatian. As you’d expect, I’m finding that it’s easy enough to take photos, but much harder to track down the names!!

Unidentified pink flowers at Asseria

Unidentified pink flowers at Asseria - subsequently identified as blue lettuce (Lactuca perennis, modra salata)

To start with, I’d photograph the flowers with a narrow depth of field, so the flower is sharply in focus, but the surrounding is nicely blurred. It really does make the flowers stand out beautifully. However… that essentially gives me no information at all about the rest of the plant which could have been really useful!

No information on leaves!

How to identify? No visible leaves!

To help ID the flowers, I have a couple of books of plants of the Adriatic coast and islands (in Croatian), plus two iPad apps on wildflowers of Europe/UK, and online resources such as Wikipedia and Plantea.hr. What I’m learning, of course, is the infinite variety of plantlife, and the fact that the ones I’ve photographed don’t always look like the standard references! For example – a flower might be listed under a different colour, or be a radically different shape from that shown, as with this delicate candelabra which turns out to be a variant of a grape hyacinth!

Tassel hyacinth

Tassel hyacinth

It’s been a surprise to me how many of these wildflowers, that are basically scattered everywhere, turn out to have very familiar names – chicory, salsify, vetch, sage, borage, mallow, campion, sorrel, pyrethrum, and so on. Native Mediterranean plants, but long ago introduced further north for their medicinal and culinary properties. Now I know chicory root has been used as a coffee substitute for years, but I had no idea that it has such a lovely blue flower!

So here’s my reference table of the flowers, at least the ones I’ve identified so far.  Disclaimer… while I have a reasonable confidence in most of the names for these plants, some are tentative and I’d be happy to hear from anyone who has a rather better grounding in botany! Click on the images for a bigger picture, and links go to wikipedia or plantea to find out more.

allium-roseum-rosy-garlic
Allium roseum
Rosy garlic
Ružičasti luk
White and pink versions exist. The pink flowers are a tasty garnish for salads.
anagallis-arvensis-blue-pimpernel
Analgallis arvensis
Blue pimpernel
Poljska Krivičica
anchusa-bugloss
Anchusa arvenensis / officinalis
Bugloss
Volujak?
Could not find an exact match for the hairy red buds, but appears to be a type of bugloss.
anthyllis-vulneraria-pink-kidney-vetch
Anthyllis vulneraria L. subsp praepropera
Pink kidney vetch / woundwort
Ranjenik
More usually yellow? Any plant with -wort as its English name indicates medicinal use.
antirrhinum-snapdragons-and
Antirrhinum majus
Snapdragon
Zijevalica
arum-italicum-italian-lords-and-ladies
Arum italicum
Italian lords-and-ladies
Veliki kozlac
Photographed in a Kastela vineyard
bitumenaria-arabian-pea
Bituminaria bitumenosa
Arabian pea or pitch trefoil
Djeteljnjak
borage-with-bee
Borage officinalis
Borage or starflower
Boražina
calendula-arvensis-field-marigold-green-beetlejpg
Calendula arvensis
Field marigold
Neven (calendula officinalis)
Pretty green beetle in the flower!
carduus-pycnocephalus-italian-thistle
Carduus pycnocephalus
Italian (plumeless) thistle
Sitnoglavičasti stričak
cichorium-intybus-chicory
Cichorium intybus
Chicory
Cikorija
Root is used in cooking and as substitute for coffee.
cistus-rockrose

cistus-white-rockrose
Cistus
Rockrose
Bušin

Two varieties – pretty in pink and in white.
Colutea-arborescens-bladder-senna
Colutea arborescens
Bladdernut tree or bladder senna
Drvolika pucalina
More a shrub than a tree
convolvulus-althaeoides-mallow-bindweed2
Convolvulus althaeoides
Mallow bindweed
Finodlakavi slak
cynoglossum-creticum-blue-hounds-tongue
Cynoglossum creticum
Blue hound’s tongue
Grčki pasji jazik
diplotaxis-tenuifolia-perennial-wallrocket
Diplotaxis tenuifolia
Perennial wall-rocket
Uskolisni dvoredac
dorycnium-hirsutum-hairy-canary-clover
Dorycnium hirsutium
(Hairy) canary clover
Čupava bjeloglavica
Love the name!
euphorbia-characias-dalmatian-spurge
Euphorbia characias
Mediterranean spurge
Velika mlječika
euphorbia-heliocopia-spurge
Euphorbia helioscopia
Spurge
Mlječika suncogled
fumaria-officinalis-fumitoryFuminaria officinalis
Fumitory
Dimnjača
glebionis-coronaria-crown-daisy
Glebionis coronaria
Crown daisy
Croatian name unknown
helianthemum-nummularium-common-rockrose
Helianthemum nummularium
Common rock-rose
Sunčanica
hippocrepis-comosa-horseshoe-vetch-close
Hippocrepus comosa
Horseshoe vetch
Croatian not known
leopoldia-comosa-tassel-hyacinth1
Leopoldia comosa or Muscari comosum
Tassel hyacinth
Kitnjasta presličica
Two versions on the latin name. Related to grape hyacinth.
lonicera-implexa-Aiton-honeysuckle
Lonicera implexa Aiton / caprifolium
Honeysuckle
Orlovi Nokti
lotus-corniculatus-birds-foot-trefoil
Lotus corniculatus
Bird’s Foot Trefoil
Svinđuša
malva-sylvestris-mallow
Malva sylvestris
Mallow
Crni sljez
Photographed in Split
melilotus-officinalis-yellow-sweet-clover
Melilotus officinalis
Yellow sweet clover
Žuti kokotac
nigella-damascena-love-in-a-mist
Nigella damascena
Love-in-a-mist
Crnjika
Native to the Mediterranean, was already known in English cottage gardens in Tudor times.
oxalis-pink-sorrel
Oxalis articulata
Pink sorrel
Cecelj
Native to S. America! Now widespread in Europe
papaver-argemone-poppy
Papaver argemone
Prickly poppy
Mak
Unusual, very tiny poppy seen in the hills.
papaver-poppy-single
Papaver rhoeas
Poppy
Divlji mak
Common poppy, seen everywhere!
pisum-sativum-pea
Pisum sativum
Pea
Grašak
punica-granatum-pomegranate
Punica granatum
Pomegranate
Nar
salvia-officinalis-sage-2
Salvia officinalis
Sage
Kadulja
Makes a lovely cordial drink
scrophularia-figwort
Scrophularia nodosa
Figwort
Čvorasti /Uskolisni strupnik
sideritis-romana-ironwort
Sideritis romana
Ironwort
Sredozemni očist
silene-latifolia-white-campion
Silene latifolia
White campion
Pušina
silene-vulgaris-bladder-campion
Silene vulgaris
Bladder campion
Pušina
sonchus-asper-prickly-sowthistle
Sonchus asper
Prickly sow-thistle
Oštri kostriš
 spartium-junceum-spanish-broom-2
Spartium junceum
Spanish broom
Brnistra
 
Tanacetum cinerariifolium
Pyrethrum
Buhač
 tordylium-apulium-mediterranean-hartwort
Tordylium apulium
Mediterranean hartwort
Apulijska orja šica
 tragopogon-purple-salsify
Tragopogon porrifolius
Purple or common salsify
Lukasta kozja brada
 trifolium-clover
Trifolium
Clover
Djetelina
 vicia-villosa-hairy-vetch
Vicia villosa Roth
Hairy vetch
Vlasastodlakava grahorica

“Art is unquestionably one of the purest and highest elements in human happiness. It trains the mind through the eye, and the eye through the mind. As the sun colours flowers, so does art colour life.”

~ John Lubbock (1834-1913) The Pleasures of Life

© Marion Podolski

This article has been reproduced with kind permission from Marion's blog Go Hvar, Ramblings about a far island. Visit the blog for all kinds of information about Hvar, from artistic to epicurean!

Many thanks to Norman Woolons of Dol for identifying the pink flower from a match in his orchard.

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  • EDITOR’S NOTE:Few places on Earth are as evocative — or as imperiled — as the vast grasslands of sub-Saharan Africa. In a new Conservation News series, “Saving the Savanna,” we look at how communities are working to protect these places — and the wildlife within.

    MARA NORTH CONSERVANCY, Kenya — Under a fading sun, Kenya’s Maasai Mara came alive.

    A land cruiser passed through a wide-open savanna, where a pride of lions stirred from a day-long slumber. Steps away, elephants treaded single-file through tall grass, while giraffes peered from a thicket of acacia trees. But just over a ridge was a sight most safari-goers might not expect — dozens of herders guiding cattle into an enclosure for the night. The herders were swathed in vibrant red blankets carrying long wooden staffs, their beaded jewelry jingling softly.

    Maasai Mara is the northern reach of a massive, connected ecosystem beginning in neighboring Tanzania’s world-famous Serengeti. Unlike most parks, typically managed by local or national governments, these lands are protected under a wildlife conservancy — a unique type of protected area managed directly by the Indigenous People who own the land.

    Conservancies allow the people that live near national parks or reserves to combine their properties into large, protected areas for wildlife. These landowners can then earn income by leasing that land for safaris, lodges and other tourism activities. Communities in Maasai Mara have created 24 conservancies, protecting a total of 180,000 hectares (450,000 acres) — effectively doubling the total area of habitat for wildlife in the region, beyond the boundaries of nearby Maasai Mara National Reserve.

    “It's significant income for families that have few other economic opportunities — around US$ 350 a month on average for a family. In Kenya, that's the equivalent of a graduate salary coming out of university,” said Elijah Toirai, Conservation International’s community engagement lead in Africa.

    © Jon McCormack

    Lions tussle in the tall grass of Mara North Conservancy.

    But elsewhere in Africa, the conservancy model has remained far out of reach.

    “Conservancies have the potential to lift pastoral communities out of poverty in many African landscapes. But starting a conservancy requires significant funding — money they simply don't have,” said Bjorn Stauch, senior vice president of Conservation International’s nature finance division.

    Upfront costs can include mapping out land boundaries, removing fences that prevent the movement of wildlife, eradicating invasive species that crowd out native grasses, creating firebreaks to prevent runaway wildfires, as well building infrastructure like roads and drainage ditches that are essential for successful safaris. Once established, conservancies need to develop management plans that guide their specified land use for the future.

    Conservation International wanted to find a way for local communities to start conservancies and strengthen existing ones. Over the next three years, the organization aims to invest millions of dollars in new and emerging conservancies across Southern and East Africa. The funds will be provided as loans, which the conservancies will repay through tourism leases. This financing will jumpstart new conservancies and reinforce those already in place. The approach builds on an initial model that has proven highly effective and popular with local communities.

    “We’re always looking for creative new ways to pay for conservation efforts that last,” Stauch said. “This is really a durable financing mechanism that puts money directly in the pockets of those who live closest to nature — giving them a leg up. And it’s been proven to work in the direst circumstances imaginable.”

    © Will McCarry

    Elijah Toirai explains current conservancy boundaries and potential areas for expansion.

    Creativity from crisis

    In 2020, the entire conservancy model almost collapsed overnight.

    “No one thought that the world could stop in 24 hours,” said Kelvin Alie, senior vice president and acting Africa lead for Conservation International. “But then came the pandemic, and suddenly Kenya is shutting its doors on March 23, 2020. And in the Mara, this steady and very well-rounded model based on safari tourism came to a screeching halt.”

    Tourism operators, who generate the income to pay landowners' leases, found themselves without revenue. Communities faced a difficult choice: replace the lost income by fencing off their lands for grazing, converting it to agriculture, or selling to developers — each of which would have had drastic consequences for the Maasai Mara’s people and wildlife.

    © Will Turner

    A black-backed jackal hunts for prey.

    “But then the nature finance team at Conservation International — these crazy guys — came up with a wild idea,” Alie said. “In just six months they put this entirely new funding model together: loaning money at an affordable rate to the conservancies so that they can continue to pay staff and wildlife rangers.”

    Conservation International and the Maasai Mara Wildlife Conservancies Association launched the African Conservancies Fund — a rescue package to offset lost revenues for approximately 3,000 people in the area who rely on tourism income. Between December 2020 and December 2022, the fund provided more than US$ 2 million in affordable loans to four conservancies managing 70,000 hectares (170,000 acres).

    The loans enabled families in the Maasai Mara to continue receiving income from their lands to pay for health care, home repairs, school fees and more. And because tourism revenues — not government funding — support wildlife protection in conservancies, this replacement funding ensured wildlife patrols continued normally, with rangers working full time.

    Born out of this emergency, we discovered a new way to do conservation.

    Elijah Toirai

    “The catastrophe of COVID-19 was total for us,” said Benard Leperes, a landowner with Mara North Conservancy and a conservation expert at Maasai Mara Wildlife Conservancies Association. “Without Conservation International and the fund, this landscape would have not been secured; the conservancies would have disintegrated as people were forced to sell their land to convert it to agriculture.”

    But it was communities themselves that proved the model might be replicable after the pandemic ended.

    “The conservancies had until 2023 before the first payment was due,” Toirai said. “But as soon as tourism resumed in mid-2021, the communities started paying back the loans. Today, the loans are being repaid way ahead of schedule.”

    “Born out of this emergency, we discovered a new way to do conservation.”

    A new era for conservation

    The high plateaus overlooking the Maasai Mara are home to the very last giant pangolins in Kenya.

    These mammals, armored with distinctive interlocking scales, are highly endangered because of illegal wildlife trade. In Kenya, threats from poaching, deforestation and electric fences meant to deter elephants from crops have caused the species to nearly disappear. Today, scientists believe there could be as few as 30 giant pangolins left in Kenya.

    Conservancies could be crucial to bringing them back. Conservation International has identified opportunities to provide transformative funding for conservancies in this area — a sprawling grassland northwest of Maasai Mara that is the very last pangolin stronghold in the country. The fund will help communities better protect an existing 10,000-hectare (25,000-acre) conservancy and bring an additional 5,000 hectares under protection. It provides a safety net, ensuring a steady income for the communities as the work of expanding the conservancy begins. With a stable income, communities can start work to restore the savanna and remove electric fences that have killed pangolins. And as wildlife move back into the ecosystem, the grasslands will begin to recover.

    In addition to expanding conservancies around Maasai Mara, Conservation International has identified other critical ecosystems where community conservancies can help lift people out poverty, while providing new habitats for wildlife. Conservation International has ambitious plans to restore a critical and highly degraded savanna between Amboseli and Tsavo National Parks in southern Kenya, as well as a swath of savanna outside Kruger National Park in South Africa.

    © Emily Nyrop

    A lone acacia tree in a sea of grass.

    Elephants, fire, Maasai and cattle

    Many of the new and emerging community conservancies have been carefully chosen as key wildlife corridors that would be threatened by overgrazing livestock.

    When the first Maasai Mara conservancies were established in 2009, cattle grazing was prohibited within their boundaries. When poorly managed, cattle can wear grasses down to their roots, triggering topsoil erosion and the loss of nutrients, microbes and biodiversity vital for soil health. It was also believed that tourists would be put off by the sight of livestock mingling with wildlife.

    © Emily Nyrop

    Cattle are closely monitored in the Maasai Mara to prevent overgrazing.

    However, over the years, landowners objected, lamenting the loss of cultural ties to cattle and herding. “That was when we changed tactics,” said Raphael Kereto, the grazing manager for Mara North Conservancy.

    Beginning in 2018, Mara North and other conservancies in the region started adopting livestock grazing practices to restore the savanna. Landowners agreed to periodically move livestock between different pastures, allowing grazed lands to recover and regrow,  mimicking the traditional methods pastoralists have used on these lands for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.

    “Initially, there was a worry that maybe herbivores and other wildlife will run away from cattle,” said Kereto. “But we have seen the exact opposite — the wildlife all follow where cattle are grazing. This is because we have a lot of grass, and all the animals follow where there is a lot of grass. We even saw a cheetah with a cub that spent all her time rotating with wildlife.”

    “It's amazing — when we move cattle, the cheetah comes with it.”

    The loans issued by the fund — now called the African Conservancies Facility — will enhance rotational grazing systems, which are practiced differently in each conservancy, by incorporating best practices and lessons from the organization’s Herding for Health program in southern Africa.

    © Will Turner

    An elephant herd stares down a pack of hyenas.

    For landowners like Dickson Kaelo, who was among the pioneers to propose the conservancy model in Kenya, the return of cattle to the ecosystem has restored a natural order.

    “I always wanted to understand how it was that there was so much more wildlife in the conservancies than in Maasai Mara National Reserve,” said Kaelo, who heads the Kenya Wildlife Conservancy Association, based in Nairobi.

    “I went to the communities and asked them this question. They told me savannas were created by elephants, fire and Maasai and cattle, and excluding any one of those is not good for the health of the system. So, I believe in the conservancies — I know that every single month, people go to the bank and they have some money, they haven't lost their culture because they still are cattle keepers, and the land is much healthier, with more grass, more wildlife, and the trees have not been cut.

    “For me, it’s something really beautiful.”


    Further reading:

    Will McCarry is the content director at Conservation International. Want to read more stories like this? Sign up for email updates. Also, please consider supporting our critical work.

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  • Conservation International is launching a historic conservation partnership to plant 1 billion trees and protect 1 million hectares across India, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Nepal.

  • More than one in three of the world’s tree species are at risk of extinction, according to the first Global Tree Assessment, published today.

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  • Years of civil war left Mozambique’s national parks in ruins. But in one park, a decade of conservation has brought the savanna roaring back to life. Now, Conservation International and Peace Parks Foundation are replicating this success on a massive scale.

  • Around the world, women beekeepers are helping to protect bees by sharing their knowledge and traditions. This International Women’s Day, we highlight the work of three beekeepers who live in very different geographies, but are united in their passion for the pollinators.

  • Earlier this year, three zebra shark pups became the first endangered sharks ever to be bred in captivity for the purpose of being released into the wild. They're part of a bold plan to bring sharks back from the brink of extinction.