Botanic enchantment

by Giuseppe Sollino

Rare plants and undergrowth in a myriad of colours.

Visitors arriving on the island are greeted by the romantic outline of Mount Epomeo and its slopes, a sight that has always inspired poets and artists. It has been compared to a female figure or to a mythical being rising from the depths of the sea. From afar it looks like an impervious, wild rock but as the ship draws closer, details gradually appear. Like an oyster opening to reveal the precious pearl within, <%=ischia%> appears in all its greenness poised between the blue sea and the red sky of a radiant dawn announcing a new day full of promise. The island's geological history and its uneven terrain bring to mind the violent events that brought about these variations in its profile - from sea level to the almost 80 metres of Mount Epomeo in just a few kilometres. The legend goes that the mythical giant Typheus lies underneath the island flung from Olympus. Tired of struggling, maybe he is sound asleep, cradled by the gentle energy released by the volcanic rock and the hot thermal waters. He is dreaming of the splendid marriage between sea and sky that has generated an enchanted island, at first bleak and wild, then increasingly green, seducing writers and poets with its promise of eternal love.
In spring this same atmosphere causes the green plants of the Mediterranean scrub to flower and display brightly coloured blooms. Broom, myrtle, heather, lentisk and laurel as well as oaks, ash tree and hawthorn, magnificently arrayed, prepare to receive the visits of their most welcome guests, for whom <%=ischia%> is the destination of a long voyage. The guests in question are the grey herons, swallows, quails, robins and all the migratory birds that return to Europe every year after spending the winter in the warm climate of the African coasts. The undergrowth dons a kaleidoscope of colours: wild orchids, fragrant violets and radiant anemones shaped like perfect suns. The scent of lavender, rosemary, nepenthe, wild marjoram and sage fills the air, defining the island's exclusive ecological importance. Plants even manage to survive on the black volcanic rock, concentrated under majestic, age-old pine trees in the form of mosses and lichens and elegant ferns, some of which are very rare or even unique (Woodwardia radicans, Pteris longifolia).
The presence of these essences of primary ecological interest - mention should also be made of the typical papyrus of the fumaroles, in itself a fundamental characteristic of <%=ischia%>'s flora - is one more reason to visit an island whose environmental riches, friendly people and quality of life never cease to amaze.

Giuseppe Sollino, nature expert