Chamomilla chamomilla
Chamomilla recutita
Matricaria recutita
Matricaria suaveolens

 
Vernacular names: 
chamomile, kamilaki, St. George’s flower

Ιt’s most common name, “chamomile” , comes from the Greek word 

“χαμομήλι” (= χάμω + μήλο) and means: apple on the ground

Morphology

It is approximately 60cm tall.

Ιt’s leaves are fern-like, long and narrow that are bipinnate or tripinnate.

It has a smooth stem and small white flowers. The flowers are borne in paniculate flower heads (capitula). The white ray florets are furnished with a ligule, while the disc florets are yellow. The hollow receptacle is swollen and lacks scales.

Chamomile as medicine

Chamomile is consumed in the form of tisane that is produced by its flowers that are either dried or damply.

 

Medicinal traits:

It is used as a drag for 

·       Reumatisms 

·       Stomach cramps, digestive 
        problems

 

It is used as a/an

·       Antipyretic

·       Analgesic for many kinds of 
       pain such as headaches,
       dysmenorrhea.

 

It enhances 

·       Liver function

·       The immune system

It is also known for its relaxing properties and it is therefore used for depression and  its ability to prevent infections such as vaginitis.

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matricaria_chamomilla

 

https://enallaktikidrasi.com/2016/05/xamomhli-uerapeytikes-idiothtes-kai-tropoi-xrhshs/

pic1, pic2, pic3

Vasilikos, Okimo, vasilitsa

Ιt’s most common name, “basilicos” , comes from the Greek word 

“βασιλικός” and means: king

Morphology

It is approximately 30-130 cm tall. 

Its leaves are green, wide, oval shaped that are 3-11cm long.

Its flowers are small and have white or a red-white colour. They form at the tip of the plants bud.

·       It is used as a drag for stomach cramps and digestive problems

·       It is used as an analgesic for many kinds of pain such as stomachaches, headaches, migraines, nausea.

·       It is used as an antipyretic

·       It is also has the ability to prevent infections such as stomatitis, herpes, enteritis.

·       Its essential oil has antioxidant properties and is known to relief from the pain of flu symptoms such as cough and insect bites. It also boosts the nervous system and is known for its relaxing properties.

Several researches have been conducted proving almost all of the plant’s medicinal traits mentioned above.

Sources:
https://enallaktikidrasi.com/2016/05/vasilikos-idiotites-tropos-chrisis/

http://www.gaiapedia.gr/gaiapedia/index.php/%CE%9C%CE%BF%CF%81%CF%86%CE%BF%CE%BB%CE%BF%CE%B3%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AC_%CF%87%CE%B1%CF%81%CE%B1%CE%BA%CF%84%CE%B7%CF%81%CE%B9%CF%83%CF%84%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AC_%CE%B2%CE%B1%CF%83%CE%B9%CE%BB%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%BF%CF%8D

pic1, pic2, pic3

The Mediterranean Region has a Mediterranean climate.
That means that the region is characterized by seasonality. Winters are mild and wet and summers are hot and dry.  In most places, including Greece, the levels of humidity are high, mostly because of the Mediterranean Sea the ¾ of the country, in Greece’s case. 

 
Vegetation types in the Mediterranean Biogeographical Region

·       Forests – Woodlands: In Greece, in higher altitudes there are deciduous trees (Quercus spp., Acer spp, Tilia spp, Castanea spp, Juglans spp. Lower – even almost at sea level - there are conifers – common species include oaks and pines. Grasslands: Mainly California valley represents Mediterranean ecosystems in this category.

 

·       Shrublands: Woody, evergreen shrubs or small trees prevail. They are usually called maquis in Mediterranean.Characteristic Maquis are Olea europaea, Arbutus spp, Ceratonia siliqua, Laurus nobilis, Pistacia spp, Juniperus spp, Phyllirea latifolia, Quercus ilex

 

·       Scrublands: Usually low and not dense, having small leaves and spiny branches. They appear mainly near the sea and have been adapted to salt and wind. This kind of vegetation around the Mediterranean basin is known as phrygana in Greece

Sources:
http://imesogeiosmas.weebly.com/muepsilonsigmaomicrongammaepsiloniotaalphakappa972-kappalambda943mualpha.html

http://www.plantsdb.gr/en/articles/260-mediterranean-climate-and-plants

Picture:

 

In winter, the temperature lowers. Although Mediterranean winter is considered mild in some places, especially high in the mountains, the temperature drops to 5-0°C or even < 0°C. What’s more, precipitation levels get higher and sometimes result to floods. If the temperature is too low the water turns into snow or ice and as a result some plant species freeze and die.

 

In spring, the temperature rises to 15-25°C. Precipitation levels drop and weather conditions become less extreme and milder. Sunlight is increased.

 

Greek summers are hot. The temperature rises and varies between 25-40°C, sometimes reaching > 40°C. Precipitation levels drop. Rains are rare, but occur from time to time.  The water from small and medium sized rivers and lakes evaporates and some of them dry out entirely. Thus, Greek summers are considered dry.

 

In autumn, the temperature rises to 10-20°C. Precipitation levels get higher.

 

From all the above we can conclude that every 4 months (approximately) the habitats of Greek plant species change. The plants have to tolerate a great range of temperatures (e.g.10-40°C) and a great range of precipitation levels (e.g. 10-100mm). The variety of these conditions are not ideal for plant growing and as a result Greek plants are frequently stressed especially in cases when weather conditions are extreme.   

Sources:
http://www.hnms.gr/emy/el/climatology/climatology_month?minas=04

Von Humboldt’s was the first to visualize data and to observe connections between different areas. He invented contour maps of temperature and air pressure. 

His major contribution to science was that he proposed the concept of the interconnectiveness of all nature. Living organisms interact with each other and with the abiotic environment. Until then, living organisms where viewd as individuals that do not interact with the environment and are not dependent of its conditions. Von Humboldt’s concept was then elaborated in his book “Cosmos”, that was written after his travels in South America.

Video:
Alexander Von Humboldt:

Sources:
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alexander-von-Humboldt

·       1950-1980: A cooling period started in northern Greece that then extended and reached the rest of the country

·       1980-today: Annual temperature increased approximately 0.4-0.6°C 
/ decade, especially during the summer months.

The frequency of heat waves has also increased while frequency of  cooling waves has decreased.

 
Due to the rising temperatures, phenomena of water scarcity occur especially in the big cities of Crete (e.g. Heraklion) where some houses are left without water for two or three days! Also, more fires tend to occur in the summer.

 

·       1990-today: Precipitation levels are decreasing on an annual and seasonal basis.

Summer, especially in areas near the Ionian Sea is getting drier.

Extreme rainfalls are getting more frequent and their variety is getting bigger.

 

A rise of the sea level is noticed in several parts of Greece, especially in islands.

Finally, despite that storms and small typhoons occur normally around the islands of Greece (mostly in the Aegean Sea and Cretan Sea), they tend to worsen as a result of the increased temperatures. 

The main reasons for climate change in Greece are the increase of world population, economic trends, transport, energy, agricultural demand and household consumption.

Energy consumption in Greece has increased by 57.2 % between 1990 and 2007. 

 
Sources:
https://www.climatechangepost.com/greece/climate-change/

https://www.climateandmonuments.com/climate-change-in-greece 

Picture:

https://theancientwebgreece.wordpress.com/2017/12/06/%CE%B1%CF%81%CF%87%CE%B1%CE%AF%CE%B1-%CE%B5%CE%BB%CE%BB%CE%B7%CE%BD%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE-%CE%B2%CE%BF%CF%84%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE-%CE%B8%CE%B5%CF%8C%CF%86%CF%81%CE%B1%CF%83%CF%84%CE%BF%CF%82/

picture:
https://arxaia-ellinika.blogspot.com/2017/02/theofrastos-mathitis-sinodiporos-sinechistis-aristoteli.html

·    Chamomile
     (Matricaria chamomilla)

·    Cretan Zelkova
     (Zelkova abelicea)

·    Hare’s-ear
     (Bupleurum kakiskalae)

·    Horstrissea dolinicola

·    Larkspur (Consolida samia)

·    Milkwort (Polygala sp.)

·    Minuartia dirphya

·    Saponaria jagelii

·    Stonecress
    (Aesthionema retsina)

 
Source:
http://www.earthsendangered.com/plant_list.asp 

The above species are threatened by habitat loss, mostly due to human activities.

 

·  Cretan Zelkova
  (Zelkova abelicea)

It is threatened by overexploitation. It is the most preferred wood for making the katsouna, which is a famous traditional Cretan shepherd’s versatile crook, but it takes an entire young tree. This is why today, it is illegal to use Z. abelicia for its wood.

Z. abelicia is also threatened by habitat loss (urbanization), overgrazing and wildfires.

Recent studies state that Z. abelicia is becoming more abundant. It is not threatened with extinction, but it remains vulnerable.

Main reasons threatening the plant species of Greece

 

·  Urbanization, Logging, Tourism

Entire habitats are constantly degraded and destroyed for the making of houses and buildings for the expansion of cities. In others the land is used for the making of hotels and facilities for tourism.

What’s more, especially in the last years habitats get fragmented due to the construction of road, highways, dams, the expansion of quarries and mines.  

 

·  Overgrazing, Agriculture

The expansion of areas that are used for grazing leads to the destruction of habitats or in a change in the habitat’s composition and biodiversity.

Concerning agriculture, areas also tend to expand leading to the destruction of habitats. What’s more, the chemicals that are used to enhance plant growth affect, not only their target: to the cultivated plants, but also plants that are located near the cultivated areas. As a result, nearby areas are strongly affected: some species die, the balance between species is disrupted and the habitat’s composition change.

 

·  Overexploitation of wildlife

Some of the above plant species, but also many more, are used for the making of perfumes, drugs, food, fuel, energy and many other uses, due to their unique properties. 

As the Greek population tends to grow, the demand for these products rises as well and the plant species (some more than others) tend to be used more and then end up being overexploited. Overexploitation leads to the reduction of the population of the species because the rate of the plant’s reproduction is lower than the rate that they are being used.

 

·  Climate change

As it was mentioned in a previous assignment, the country of Greece is also affected by climate change. The rising temperatures, the decrease of levels of precipitation and the constantly changing conditions affect the microhabitats that every species lives in. 

Species of cooler microclimates are affected the most. Their habitats are shrinking every year and they need to migrate to higher altitudes in order to survive. Also, the increasing floods leads to the death of more and more species every year.  

 

·  Fires 

Fires are expected to occur in the summer due to high temperatures of Greece and some plant species are adapted to withstand fires or to sprout after fires. But, due to climate change fires tend to get more frequent and most plant species cannot adapt in this new conditions. 

What’s more, an increase in human-inducing fires have been noticed, especially in the summer periods. Fires are lit either for the destruction of habitats in order to build buildings, or to burn dry plants from crops, animal feed etc. Most of the times these fires get out of hand and end up burning extremely large areas, sometimes even inhabited ones.

Sources:
https://tvxs.gr/news/%CF%80%CE%B5%CF%81%CE%B9%CE%B2%CE%AC%CE%BB%CE%BB%CE%BF%CE%BD/%CE%BC%CE%B5-%CE%B5%CE%BE%CE%B1%CF%86%CE%AC%CE%BD%CE%B9%CF%83%CE%B7-%CE%B1%CF%80%CE%B5%CE%B9%CE%BB%CE%B5%CE%AF%CF%84%CE%B1%CE%B9-%CF%84%CE%BF-%C2%BC-%CF%84%CE%B7%CF%82-%CE%B5%CE%BB%CE%BB%CE%B7%CE%BD%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE%CF%82-%CF%87%CE%BB%CF%89%CF%81%CE%AF%CE%B4%CE%B1%CF%82&dr=tvxsmrstvxs

 

 

·       Raising awareness

The most important step to take is the raising of the awareness of not only the people who live near the area that is to be protected, but also of the rest of the country. 

Locals need to be aware of the problem, the factors causing it, how bad things are and the importance of the ecosystems in order to change their ways of living and make sure that their activities are not harmful for the environment. 

They also need to be informed on the solutions to the problem so that they too can work on saving the day, or even become volunteers and aid further the campaign. 

Finally, they need to be informed about the ways to notify the local authorities in case they detect activities harmful to the environment (human activities or natural phenomena).

·  Raising the awareness of the authorities

The authorities should also be informed, about how serious the problem is, what steps can be taken etc. By understanding how important it is to save the environment they could also help the raise of awareness, provide the necessary funds to scientific groups and also enact laws and sentences for environmental crimes. 

·       Help the Scientific Groups

Some scientific expeditions need not only biologist but people with other expertise or just extra manpower to help with the monitoring, the samples etc. 

The organization can also help with the raising of funds to support the expeditions or other scientific works in case the local authorities do not provide the scientific groups with any money or if the funds provided are not enough for the all the procedures that are supposed to be done.

·       Proteins

The amount of proteins in pulses varies between species from approximately 200 g/kg dry matter (DM) for pigeon pea and chickpea to 500-550 g/kg DM for peanut meal, soyabean meal and soyabeans.

Pulses’ protein have low concentration of sulfur-containing amino acids.

 

·       Polysaccharides

The principal polysaccharide in the majority of pulses is starch, although some grains, for example the lupin grain contains mainly β-(1,4)-galactan and others, like faba beans and peas contain mostly a-galactosides.

Polysaccharides are known to reduce the development of diabetes

Pulses contain great amounts of dietary fibers and are important for patients with digestive problems

 

·       Lipid

Not many pulses species contain big amounts of lipids but lipid content of soyabean seed and peanut seed is high. 

 

·       Vitamins

Pulses contain vitamin C that is known to boost the immune system. They also contain some amounts of β-carotene, malic acid, uric acid and folic acid. Note that folic acid is known to have a positive effect against heart diseases and cancer.

·       Other elements

Pulses are the group of legumes that contain the biggest amounts of Fe. They also contain Ca, P, K and other trace elements, but not Na. 

Despite all these incredibly important nutrients, pulses also contain some secondary metabolites that adverse effects on animals. Some of them, like lectins interfere with the digestion process, mostly in the small intestine and therefore pulses are considered a little hard to digest. However, most secondary metabolites are not considered a problem as all pulses are cooked before consumption.

Sources:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/23675302_Nutritional_Value_of_Grain_Legumes_for_Ruminants/download

https://www.mednutrition.gr/portal/efarmoges/leksiko-diatrofis/12598-ospria-min-ta-paraleipete

picture:
https://www.thinkfree.gr/%CF%84%CE%B1-%CF%89%CF%86%CE%AD%CE%BB%CE%B9%CE%BC%CE%B1-%CE%B3%CE%B9%CE%B1-%CF%84%CE%B7%CE%BD-%CF%85%CE%B3%CE%B5%CE%AF%CE%B1-%CF%8C%CF%83%CF%80%CF%81%CE%B9%CE%B1/