Autumn Plants of the Peloponnese

South of mainland Greece, and joined to the rest of the country only by the 6-kilometre Corinth isthmus, lies the Peloponnese. This enormous peninsula is strewn with the remains of classical antiquity and Byzantine monuments, and it also contains some of Greece’s most spectacularly varied scenery — high mountains, attractive streams, fertile plains, valleys and lovely beaches. The area is richly endowed, both in names famous from Greek mythology, and nature. As well as being pleasing to the eye, the area’s karst scenery creates rich limestone soils on which grow the Peloponnese’s famous assemblage of autumn-flowering bulbs.

The Peloponnese endures relentless heat from June to September, but the earth here comes to life once again in the autumn and early winter. The local plant-life has evolved to escape the intense summer heat by growing during the early and latter months of the year, and many species choose to flower at this time. The region is, therefore, justly famous for its diversity of autumnflowering bulbs, and these will be the focus, and highlight, of our tour — indeed, it is the only place in Europe where it is possible to see cyclamen, crocus and snowdrops in flower at the same time!

Forested mountains and idyllic beaches characterise the Peloponnese landscape. On a map, the peninsula’s shape is reminiscent of fingers spreading out into the sea, each ‘finger’ with its own characteristic micro-habitats and flora, while the severe Taygetos mountain range rises steeply to the west of the Plain of Sparta. The limestone peak of Mount Taygetos stands 2,404 metres high and is clad in forests of Black Pine and fir. Following two nights in the small town of Kalavrita, from where we will enjoy the botany and scenery of Mount Chelmos, we move to the charming seafront town of Gytheio for the remaining five nights of the tour. Gytheio is the gateway to the Mani Peninsula, and is an ideal base from which to explore the region’s three areas of key botanical interest, Mani, Mystras and Malea, which jut out into the Aegean Sea. Even in late autumn the weather in this part of Greece is typically still warm and sunny, providing ample opportunities to enjoy full days of botanising, to venture in search of specific floral treats, to eat al fresco and to soak up the last rays of European sun for the year.

Though familiar in Britain as one of the harbingers of spring, approximately one third of all crocus species (there are 80 in total) flower in autumn and some right through the winter. In the Peloponnese, as the summer temperatures cool down and the first rains arrive, the flowering of crocuses and other plants is triggered. Nestled among the moist stream beds and gorges of the Taygetos Mountains are patches of cyclamen and snowdrops, and of particular interest are the delightful blooms of Galanthus reginae olgae and widespread Cyclamen hederifolium spp. crassifolium. Some late-flowering stands of Colchicum spp. also appear at this time of year, as well as crocus, which flower in great profusion on these slopes!

To the east of Gytheio, Malea is home to the small, pale lilac Crocus hadriaticus ssp. parnonicus as well as breathtaking displays of Crocus goulimyi in season, and these stands are often accompanied by Crocus laevigatus. The white blooms of the latter are a treat to see, for they are unique to the Peloponnese, its petals being striped in Crete! Among the many special crocuses of this area is the endemic Crocus biflorus ssp. melantherus which blooms in autumn — in fact, it is the only one of the four biflorus subspecies to flower at this time of year, and represents a unique adaptation to survival here in the country’s driest region.

The central of the three peninsulas we will explore on this tour is Mani, and it is here we will hope to find the largest of the crocuses, Crocus niveus. Its name means ‘of the snows’ — a somewhat curious choice for a plant which occurs down to sea level! It is a delightful member of the family, however, sporting large white and pale lilac flowers (which can be up to six inches high!) with deep yellow throats. In addition, the scented Cyclamen hederifolium ssp. confusum will be in flower, along with masses of Cyclamen graecum. Both are common on rocky hillsides and in olive groves at this time of year. Yellow Sternbergia are common throughout the Peloponnese and the curious aroid Biarum tenuifolium is another speciality here.

The Peloponnese is a rocky, starkly beautiful land baked by summer sun, and adorned in autumn with wonderful annual displays of autumn-flowering bulbs — and it is these little-known treasures of the region which will be the focus of this holiday, led by our expert and enthusiast, David Tattersfield.