However hard you try as a photographer there are some flower scenes, the magic of which cannot be captured by the camera. In this part of Crete in Spring the Anemone coronaria blooms in thousands and seeing drifts of these large showy blooms, good enough for any garden, waving in the breeze is one of the wonders of the wildflower world. Go there if you ever have the chance - you'll never forget it.

Many of these plants are protected behind ugly rusting wire fences which try as they might can't detract from the show which nature puts on here on the Omalos Plateau. They are mixed with other spectacular flowers too including Tulipa saxatilis flowering just a little later. The tourist hordes aren't here in numbers at this time of year because the big attraction: the Samaria Gorge is closed until May.

Anemone coronaria blooms in various colours. Most are blue, purple or mauve but just a few are bright red. The protection of these areas is necessary because the sheep would graze most of them away otherwise. There was one one are unfenced grazed area where some A. coronaria bloomed but only in small numbers with no stunning groups.

Omalos plateau, by road, Crete 7th April 2007

Added on 2nd May 2007, updated 7th July 2008, updated 26th Feb 2010, updated 29th April 2010, updated 11th August 2014