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This blog is dedicated to Malta - my island home. My aim is not to bore you with history but to share my thoughts and a few facts together with a photo or two. For a more in -depth background of the island please go here. The purpose of this blog is not to point out the short-comings of the island. There are plenty that do that already. My wish is to show you the beauty of an island at the cross roads of the Mediterranean, a melting pot of history; a place where fact and fiction are sometimes fused to create unique myths and legends; a country that has been conquered so many times that our culture is a mish mesh of the lands that surround us and of lands far away. I confess that my greatest desire is to make you fall in love with this tiny enchanting island.

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Wednesday 25 April 2012

Wildflowers Of Malta: Crown Daisy

Crown Daisy

The Crown Daisy (Glebionis coronaria), or lelluxa  in Maltese, is one of the most prolific wild flowers in Malta. From February to May various areas around the island are carpeted with its golden flowers. The plants will wilt and dry as soon as the temperature starts to rise. This plant does not grow readily in areas where the soil contains a lot of clay as it prefers well-drained soil. But sometimes it seems as if they will grow just anywhere …

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Crown daisies are not poisonous and their flowers have a pungent smell reminiscent of camomile. They are said to have expectorant properties and were used with copious amounts of black pepper to treat gonnorrhoea.

Fawwara 287

Crown daisies are frequently used by children in games of ‘he loves me, he loves me not’ when subsequent petals are removed until the last remaining petal will confirm whether he loves you or not.

A variant of this flower exists consisting of a yellow centre and white petals. This flower is much less common than the all-yellow flower. Crown daisies are at their peak right now. In a few weeks they will all disappear leaving us only with the memory of fields paved with gold.

Wild flowers 014-001

Photographed at Fawwara

April 2011

7 comments:

  1. Daisies are very well-suited to the 'he loves me, he loves me not,' game.

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  2. HI Loree
    How pretty pretty these daisies are.. and your lovely nature walks.. makes me want to get out and take a walk.. there.. not here.. here is getting chilly..

    Thanks for popping in.. and how interesting your grandfather was in Gallipoli.. mine was English and fought in Europe.. but the Anzac Ode [from an english poem] always brings tears to my eyes.. My mum's birthday was the day after Anzac day and she died quite young so the poem has even more meaning attached to it for me..

    Ok. long comment.. sorry.. Have a great week.. ciao xxx Julie

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  3. I love their fresh, cheerful yellow color. The stone wall looks so pretty with the blooming daisy plants spilling over the top!

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  4. Such beautiful yellow crown daisy you have there in Malta! I especially love that stone wall with the flowers.

    Yes, Reach Beyond Limits and Dances Of Dreams are now re-opened, by me! Icy gave me the control for now :-) Thanks for visiting!

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  5. Beautiful flowers indeed!

    Love the image of the flowers growing along the stonewall!

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  6. Beautiful flowers... send flowers to your loved ones with our Malta Flower Delivery and make them happy.

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