Hypericum olympicum - Mount Olymous St John's-wort

Phylum: Magnoliophyta - Class: Equisetopsida - Order: Malpighiales - Family: Hypericaceae

Description

There are so many species and subspecies of Hypericum in the wild that it is easy to be confused - except by this one. The normal size of Hypericum flowers in the wild is up to 2-3cm but with Hypericum olympicum they are much larger - up to 5.5cm in diameter.

Distribution

Occuring commonly throughout the Balkans but quite rare elsewhere, there are strongholds for Mount Olympus St John's-wort in Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey as well as in Slovenia, and other parts of former Yugoslavia

Habitat

This lovely wild flower blooms in meadows, dry and rocky places and also on roadsides.

Flowering times

Mount Olymous St John's-wort can be seen in flower from May to July. The specimens shown on this page were photographed in the foothills of the Rhodopi Mountains in Bulgaria in mid June.

Etymology

The genus name Hypericum comes from the Greek hyper, meaning above, and eikon, meaning picture; it reflects the fact that these plants were hung above pictures in the belief that this would serve to ward off evil spirits. The specific epithet olympicum is a reference to Mount Olympus, where this species occurs.

Similar species

Throughout Britain, Ireland and most of northern/central mainland Europe, several St. John's-wort species grow both in the wild and as cultivated plants in gardens. Another introduced St John's-wort species, Hypericum calycinum, more commonly known to us as Rose of Sharon, originates in the Near East, and has even larger flowers - around 7 cm in diameter - and this is the species most familiar to us from gardens and parks in Britain and Ireland; it is an agressive shrub which has become widely naturalised in the countryside and can often be seen on roadside banks and verges and beside railway lines.

Other species commonly seen in Britain and Ireland include Perforate St John's-wort Hypericum perforatum, Trailing St John's-wort Hypericum humifusum, Marsh St. John's-wort Hypericum elodes, and Slender St John's-wort Hypericum pulchrum. The so-called perforations which give the latter species its name refer to translucent dots on the leaves of the plant, which look like holes when held up to the light.