About FloraCretica & Our Projects

FLORACRETICA is non-governmental, not-for-profit organisation currently in the process of incorporation as a charitable trust in Greece. Our members are not all scientists or even botanists; the majority are just interested in the plant life here and come from all sorts of backgrounds. Our logo is the rare and endangered Androcymbium rechingeri, the Minoan Lily.

One of our first projects is to photograph the flora of Crete, and we are aware that this is a project that will keep us busy for many years to come. During our excursions and field trips we record, draw and photograph on sites all over the island. We often discover plants, insects and birds, which we cannot identify. We would, therefore, appreciate the help of anyone with a greater knowledge, who is prepared to share it with the general community here at FloraCretica. The online image library is the result of this work.  

Our aim is to bring the wonderful flora of Crete to a wider audience, who appreciate the sheer beauty of the island, without having or wishing to have, a greater scientific knowledge.  For those who do want to learn more than we can offer, we are happy to recommend the new Flowers of Crete - an excellent volume written by John Fielding and Nicholas Turland, and edited by Brian Mathew. Other volumes by other authors are planned to be published in the next few years and these can only add to our knowledge and understanding.

In November of 2005 we were collaborating in a research project involving autumn-flowering bulbs from Crete. 
Here we liaised between scientists from the US and the authorities in Greece to facilitate the ongoing research work. We also provided the logistics and other ancillary services for the visitors in Crete during their expedition here.

Furthermore, we are assisting researchers from universities in their work on the flora of Crete by putting them in touch with the relevant permit-granting authorities, land-owners and others, and by identifying and locating, after the relevant permits have been applied for as well checked and issued, seeds, bulbs and other plant material, and recording as well as assisting in the submission of data to Greek government and international authorities about the plant material found, collected and sent for research purposes. FLORACRETICA assumes no responsibility or liability for the issuing of any permits or other documents by government agencies and services.

One Flora Cretica Project (plant taxonomy and identification for Crete for non-botanists) is currently under construction and will be available online soon in a beta testing version (11/2005). For this project we are in need of support and assistance, so if you are willing and able to help please enquire here.
Also we are working on setting up a glossary of botanical terms for the non-botanist, currently in English only, but soon to be expanded to Greek and German If anyone is willing to translate the site into French or any other language, please let us know.  We would be delighted to hear from you..
The work on the online image library is an ongoing project, and will probably take a few more months to get nearer to completion. Here we are always in need of good quality and high resolution images.

For all those interested in the wild flowers of Crete and who would like to be able to identify what they see out there during their walks, we have the online identification system, and we will soon have worksheets available that you can download, print and take along on your excursions and outings. With these worksheets, you will be able to identify the wild flowers you are likely to find and you can keep a record of what you actually spotted and where, and you may then return these worksheets to FloraCretica for an inclusion into our database.

We will soon also be offering courses in wild herb collection and use, for example making your own essential oils from plants gathered.

We also need assistance and sponsorship for our work, and are, also through this website, actively looking for support from private persons, organisations, institutions and businesses. If you want to help us with this important work, please get in touch and we can discuss how you can help educate others on the need to  preserve the fragile balance of  nature on this beautiful island.

Important habitats are constantly under threat by the builders.  But as you can see, Mother Nature is fighting back!

It is our intention to establish mini nature reserves covering all habitats, that could be used for transplanting plants that are threatened by the bulldozer, plough or grazing.  These small areas would be fenced and clearly marked as a Nature Reserve.  But a project like this will cost a lot of money.  If anyone can suggest any International Funding available or has information on setting up a charitable trust in Greece, please do get in touch. At the moment our resources are limited, but with your help we can make this idea work. Please get in touch via email.

Developers, architects, land owners and other members of the general public are invited to request site surveys by FloraCretica members, so that we may identify and possibly help in the relocation of plants that deserve special protection. These will then after successful collaboration be awarded the Flora Cretica Seal of Approval for their particular project.

At present, we are monitoring, on a regular basis, various sites on the island, in the hope that one day these may become FloraCretica Protected Habitats. Protected Habitats are planned: near Elounda five adjacent sites (between 4,000 sqm and 16,000 sqm each), near Episkopi one site (size subject to survey), near Kavousi two sites (approx. 48,000 sqm total), several sites in the area around the Katharo and Lassithi plateaux (various sizes), and more recently identified a small plot on the Rhodopou peninsula. Most of this land is not building land, it is kept clear and ungrazed in agreement with the actual land owners. Sites we are currently monitoring are listed here.

Within the coming few months we shall be starting several botanising expeditions to several offshore islands which are part of the greater Cretan Area. We have for this purposes established contacts with municipalities and academic institutions as well as companies, who are going to support our projects. During these expeditions we will not be taking samples, but simply photograph, catalogue and map locations of species encountered on the small islands in the Cretan and Libyan Seas.