Anthemis rigida is an annual plant with fleshy leaves that blooms from March to June. It is found throughout the Eastern Mediterranean in rocky and coastal locations and phryganic environments. Since the time of the ancient Greeks and Romans, the name “anthemis” had been used for the species today called Matricaria chamomilla (the most common species of chamomile), Anthemis tinctoria and Anthemis rosea. Today in Greece the species of the genus “anthemis” are known as “daisies” and “wild chamomile.”

Anthyllis hermanniae is a perennial resilient shrub found in coastal areas, phryganic and rocky sites in the Mediterranean. Its flowers are small and yellow with a very pleasant and intense aroma and are frequented by bees and many other insects. Because it is not protected by thorns, it is vulnerable to grazing sheep and goats.

Arisarum vulgare is a perennial, bulbous geophyte 20 to 40 cm tall, with entire leaves with a heart-shaped base and a long, slender stem with violet spots. The main part of the flower is 3 to 5 cm long, upright, it is light green with red-violet streaks towards the base and deep green to brown-violet at the top. In the upper part there are many, small male flowers; in the lower part there are the female ones. A Mediterranean species, found in rocky and grassy locations. It is toxic if eaten raw, and causes a very unpleasant sensation, similar to the sting of a needle in the mouth and tongue.

This so called “daffodil” is a perennial rhizomatous plant. The roots of the plant have spindle-shaped rhizomes while the leaves are linear, and all grow from its base. The flowers are white, with reddish-brown ribs, many brought together in branching inflorescences. A type found in the Mediterranean region, it is common in barren meadows, rocky or sandy locations.

The “Atraktylis” or “thorn mastic” is a perennial plant that is found in rocky locations; its leaves form a rosette in the center of which develops a durable flowering head in purple-pink color. It is a toxic plant with many applications in traditional medicine.

Austrocylindropuntia subulata is a cactus species native to the Peruvian Andes, found throughout the world. The Latin adjective subulata refers to the shape of its leaves. It is also known by its common name in Greek as “Eva’s pin” or “Eva’s needle.”

The species Ballota acetabulosa is a perennial shrub of the family Lamiaceae, endogenous in Southeastern Greece, Crete and Western Turkey. It is a compact shrub with fluffy shoots and rounded gray-green leaves. In late summer and autumn it blooms with small pink flowers. To this day, in many parts of Greece it is traditionally used to light candle wicks.

Beta vulgaris is a flowering plant of the subfamily Betoideae of the family Amaranthaceae. From an economic point of view it is the most important crop of the large Caryophyllales family. It has many groups of varieties, such as sugar beets, which are the largest source for the production of table sugar. The wild ancestor of cultivated beets is the sea beet (Beta vulgaris subsp. Maritima).

An edible annual plant of the Asteraceae or Compositae family, Calendula arvensis blooms in autumn and winter with fragrant orange flowers. It is found all over Greece, in various locations.

Calicotome villosa is a perennial thorny shrub up to 1.5 to 2 meters tall. It blooms in early spring and its flowers are bright yellow. Its shoots in summer turn into thorns, while its fruit often serves as food for goats.

Centaurea raphanina is a perennial terrestrial edible plant. Its slightly fleshy glossy leaves form a flat rosette. It grows in stony soils and develops a large and deep root. It is consumed either boiled or as a pickle, has a characteristic aroma and crunchy texture. It has antioxidant and anti-carcinogenic properties, beneficial for the cardiovascular system.

Centaurea spinosa is a perennial shrub with a characteristic compact shape and can reach one meter in height. It is found mainly in rocky, coastal areas where one single plant or group of them can cover the ground and make a large area impenetrable. It blooms in early summer with tiny white-pink and purple flowers.

Cerinthe major is an annual – and in some cases biennial or perennial – plant that reaches 20-30 cm in height, and blooms with tubular, yellow-red flowers that are visited by many insects from February to April. It is found in rocky places, uncultivated areas and on the edges of roads throughout Southern Europe.

Cistus creticus is an evergreen perennial shrub of the Cistaceae family that blooms from December to June with pink or white flowers that have characteristic “crumpled” petals and abundant yellow pollen in the center. The abundant and nutritious pollen and the resin produced by the plant give it great beekeeping value. It is found in the Mediterranean in limestone soils, stony and barren sites with good drainage.

A perennial, bulbous geophyte, whose bulb has a brownish-black covering. Its leaves (usually two in number and narrow and lanceolate in shape) appear together with its flowers (from one to five in number – and more rarely up to twelve, with a pink-violet color) from September to December. The anthers of the stamens are violet to black and have yellow pollen. It is a species of the central Mediterranean (Greece, Albania, Italy, Malta, France, Algeria and Tunisia) and is found in rocky lands.

Crepis is a genus of annual and perennial flowering plants of the Asteraceae family that resembles dandelions. The most obvious difference is that Crepis usually have branches with multiple heads (although they may have solitary heads). The name of the genus Crepis comes from the Greek krepis, which means “slipper” or “sandal”, which is probably due to the flower’s shape.

Α perennial bulbous geophyte. The housing of the bulb has a paper texture and is torn in vertical, parallel strips. Its flowers are violet, occasionally with darker ribs. The pharynx is usually yellow or sometimes white. The anthers and pollen are white. Its spots are red or orange, strongly branched, protruding from the rim. Its flowers remain open during the night; it is an endemic species of the N. Aegean (Cyclades, Hydra, Karpathos), usually found on bushy and rocky slopes.

The Cyclamen is a perennial tuberous plant. Its flowering takes place from autumn to early winter, before the appearance of its leaves. The crown is white to pink with violet spots. The leaves are 3-7 cm long, and are variegated, usually cardioid with serrated edges, deep green with gray variegated spots. The tuber is large, in the shape of a sphere, its roots growing from the base. After flowering, the stems are spirally wound; this gives the cyclamen its name. It is found in Greece, the Aegean, Cyprus and Asian Turkey, in rocky places.

A perennial bulbous geophyte easily distinguished by its large height (up to 1.5 m). It has numerous white flowers, an inflorescence that appears in autumn directly from the ground or from large bulbs (up to 20 cm in diameter and weighing 1 kg) that often protrude from the soil surface. It has broad leaves that appear after flowering until summer. It is found in coastal areas of the Mediterranean, up to 300 m. altitude.

Echium italicum is a biennial plant with a central shoot that has many branches. It can reach a height of one meter and its trunk is fluffy, while its flowers are white in a pyramidal inflorescence. It is found in meadows but also in rocky, sandy and barren locations – from northern Spain and Libya to Turkey, Georgia and Afghanistan. Both the roots and the rest of the plant have been used in folk medicine as an antipyretic and analgesic.

Annual or biennial, up to 40 cm tall, gruinum has leaves with deep creases and sometimes a pair of free, smaller leaves at the base. Their nflorescences include two to six violet flowers. The fruit has a characteristic beak due to its size that reaches 60 to 100 mm and which after ripening is twisted. It is found in dry meadows and coastal places, in the region of the Aegean and Sicily, and specifically in Syros, in stony places and sloping roads.

Geranium rotundifolium is an annual plant with small pink-purple flowers. It reaches a height of 40 cm and thrives in various soils and especially in areas near the sea, even in ruins and along roadsides. It is widespread in locations with mild climates and is considered a particularly persistent weed when it is in a place undesirable for the grower.

This large daisy can reach one meter in height. With a pronounced stem, branched and pinnate leaves, heads up to six cm with a yellow disc, and white or yellow peripheral flowers. It is a plant that grows on roadsides and fields, often grown as an ornamental plant. It blooms from July to September and both its leaves and flowers are used for therapeutic purposes. Among other things, it has aromatic and expectorant properties.

Hypericum triquetrifolium is a perennial plant with small triangular leaves. It blooms from May to September. Its flowers are yellow, with many large stamens that produce thousands of tiny seeds. The whole plant emits a pleasant smell that whets the appetite. It is found in the Mediterranean in dry, sandy and isolated locations with low altitude.

A Mediterranean species of plant, of the Plumbaginaceae family. It is perennial, drought resistant, with lacy leaves and purple-violet calyxes with white flowers. Its shoots are green, without leaves, hard, durable, almost square in cross section with linear fins and reach 45-60 cm in height. All parts of it, except the calyx and the flowers, are fluffy.

Malva sylvestris is a plant widespread throughout the Mediterranean basin and in many other places. It grows from the coastal zone to a fairly high altitude. The mallow has dense foliage, with palmate leaves and mainly pink flowers, growing from the stem. Its flowering period includes the entire spring and the beginning of summer.

Mandragora officinarum is a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the nightshade family (Solanaceae). It has leaves arranged in a rosette and a thick branching root. In the center of the rosette bloom large purple or white flowers in the shape of a bell, which then turn yellow or orange berries. Because they contain tropical alkaloids (atropine, scopolamine, and hyoscyamine) that cause delusions and hallucinations, and at the same time the shape of their roots often resembles human forms, they have been associated with a variety of religious and spiritual practices.

Medicago arborea is an evergreen shrub found in dry and rocky locations of Southern Europe and reaches a height of 2 meters. Its flowers are yellow and its fruit is a snail-shaped pod. It is a fodder plant known for its use since antiquity, while its leaves are also edible by humans. Research has shown and pointed out the ability of the plant to significantly slow down soil erosion caused by weather.

Mercurialis annua is an annual plant with a height of up to 50 cm. It has a long flowering period that begins in February, blooming with small white flowers. It is a very common and widespread plant that thrives in temperate zones, is poisonous with an unpleasant odor and taste and is considered a weed in crops.

The “narcissus” is a perennial geophyte with elongated cylindrical leaves, which are absent during flowering. Its flowers are usually solitary and can reach up to three in number; they are bicolor with white petals and orange, fragrant crowns. Blooms in autumn. Mediterranean species, found in rocky and generally dry locations.

Notobasis syriaca is an annual thorny plant of the Asteraceae family, found in barren locations. Its leaves are thorny with white nerves and it blooms with spherical flowering heads that are also surrounded by large thorns. The flowers are purple and appear from February to June depending on the location.

Oxalis pes-caprae is a perennial plant with sparse silky hairs, without shoots. Its leaves are compound with three cardioid leaves and long stems, growing directly from the ground. Its flowers are yellow with long peduncles. It is a highly resistant and annoying weed with a geographical distribution originally in North Africa. In 1806 it was introduced in Malta and within 50 years it spread throughout the Mediterranean. In addition to its typical form, it often appears as a plant with many petals.

Parietaria judaica is a herbaceous perennial plant that belongs to the family of nettles. During flowering and thanks to the morphological mechanisms of its flowers, it releases abundant pollen in the form of clouds. It typically grows on walls and bricks. The pollen of this plant is highly allergenic. The flowers are dicotyledonous. The plant is native to Western and Southern Europe.

Phlomis fruticosa is a woody shrub that grows in rocky or stony soils and phryganic settings of the Eastern Mediterranean and as far west as Sardinia. It blooms depending on the region from late March to early June. Its flowers have a yellow color and are of special beekeeping value. In the past it has been used as medicine, and also in the manufacture of gunpowder.

Reichardia picroides, also known as “milkweed”, is an edible perennial herb, rich in minerals and trace elements with detoxifying, cardiokinetic, and analgesic properties, among others, according to university research. It belongs to the asterales family and is found mainly in the Mediterranean and in mild climates. When a leaf is cut, the plant releases a milky juice. It blooms in spring, and produces yellow flowers.

The Rosa damascena, more commonly known as “Damascus and Bulgaria rose”, “Turkish rose”, “Taif rose”, “Arabian rose”, “Isfahan rose” and “Castillo rose” is a hybrid rose originating from the Rosa gallica and Rosa moshata.

Sage is a perennial shrub found in rocky places and phryganic settings. It has shoots covered with white fluff and leaves green on the upper side and white-green on the lower. It is a very aromatic plant that contains as main substances essential oil, saponins, bitter substances, terpenes, resins, bitter diterpenes, tannins, triterpenes, flavonoids and thujone.

Sarcopoterium spinosum is a perennial thorny shrub up to 50 cm tall, one of the most common species found in phryganic settings of island Greece and the Mediterranean. The seasonal dimorphism of its leaves makes it particularly drought resistant. It grows easily in dry, barren and degraded soils, or after fires, while its flowering period is from February to April.

Smyrnium olusatrum also known as Alexanders, or wild leaf celery or Smyrnia, is a cultivated flowering plant native to the Meditteranean and able to thrive in more northern climates. It flowers in green-yellow blossoms from April to June. Wild leaf celery was widely used in cooking in older times; its taste is similar to parsley and leaf celery. Nowadays it is not used for cooking but it grows as a wild plant in many parts of Europe. It is also an animal feed that is very much appreciated by horses.

An extremely edible plant – annual, biennial or perennial. Its upright shoot can reach a height of up to one meter. It blooms with small yellow flowers. It is one of the most common and easy to identify edible greens. Its leaves are collected when they are tender and cooked in various ways. It is very nutritious and contains, among others, vitamin C and vitamin K and trace elements with many beneficial properties.

Sternbergia lutea is a perennial bulbous plant, belonging to the family Amaryllidaceae, and blooms from September to December. It is found at low altitudes in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and Asia in stony and dry locations and is a plant of beekeeping value.

Commonly known as the “dandelion,” this is a perennial plant of the Asterales family. It can be found growing on lawns, roadside edges, shores, waterfronts, and other wetland areas. Taraxacum officinale is considered a weed. It is sometimes used as a medicinal herb and in food preparation.

Teucrium polium is a perennial plant found in rocky and dry places in the Mediterranean. It blooms in inflorescences with small white or purple flowers from May to August. The plant has been attributed a variety of medicinal properties and is widely used in folk medicine.

With its antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, thyme is one of the dominant spices in the Greek diet. The plant is found in the Mediterranean and the Balkans. Perennial phrygana is a beekeeping, medicinal and aromatic plant that is found in rocky and barren locations. In early summer it is covered by tiny purple flowers, visited by bees.

Umbilicus rupestris is a perennial plant that grows in rocky locations and very often in stone walls and rock crevices. It is a succulent plant with fleshy stem and circular leaves. It develops an inflorescence that covers its entire main stem, and is often used in homeopathy.

Vicia villosa is a plant native to Europe and West Asia. It is a legume, grown as a livestock crop, cover crop and component of manure. It is resistant to cold and spreads very quickly, which can cause problems when it is considered a weed for crops.