Characteristic Plants of East Iceland

The nature of East Iceland is endowed with beauty and diversity in both large and small aspects, and the plant kingdom holds a prominent place there. When traveling around East Iceland, it is noticeable that several species of flowering plants are common there but are rarely seen or absent in other parts of the country. These plants are often referred to as East Fjord species. The best known is the bluebell, which is common in East Iceland but also seen in a few other places in the country. Other common species in East Iceland that are almost unknown elsewhere are the rock lady, yellow saxifrage, chickweed wintergreen, and lady's mantle. Additionally, there are some rarer species that are confined to East Iceland. These include trembling aspen, alpine saw-wort, bitter vetch, bearberry, creeping willow, glacier rose, bristle clubmoss, and rock fern. Most of these species are distinctive, beautiful in form or colour, and easily recognizable.

The bluebell (Campanula rotundifolia) is very common throughout East Iceland and is often associated with the area's characteristic flora. It is a medium-sized herb with several slender upright stems that grow from a shared root or rhizome. It is easily recognized by its relatively large blue bell-shaped flowers, which are both elegant and delicate, with a somewhat supernatural quality. The bluebell blooms from early summer to autumn. It grows in various dry habitats, heaths, meadows, screes, and boulder fields. The bluebell has been used as an ornamental plant, and children have used it for play, such as finger rings and church bells. The bluebell's appearance is beautiful and refined, evoking emotions and thus frequently appearing in stories and poems. It has also been used as a design motif in textiles, knitting patterns, and postcards.

Yellow saxifrage (Saxifraga aizoides) is common throughout East Iceland. It is one of thirteen saxifrage species in Iceland and is easily recognized by its many upright stems growing from a ground-hugging stem. It often forms tufts or spreads on rocks, screes, boulder fields, and near springs and streams, which are its main habitats. The flowering stems are 5-15 cm high, and the flowers are yellow and easily recognizable. There are no known uses for yellow saxifrage other than its pleasing appearance, which is of considerable value as it richly decorates boulder fields, screes, and riverbanks in East Iceland with its bright yellow colour.

Lady's mantle (Alchemilla faeroensis) is the only flowering herb known exclusively in Iceland and the Faroe Islands. It is a typical East Fjord characteristic plant and is among the common species in the East Fjords and the inland Fljótsdalshérað but is very rare in other parts of the country. It somewhat resembles the lady's mantle and even the lion's foot, but it is easy to distinguish the lady's mantle by its leaves. The leaves of the lady's mantle are more deeply lobed than those of the lady's mantle but not fully lobed like those of the lion's foot. The flowers of the lady's mantle are small and rather inconspicuous, sitting in a cluster on stems growing from the leaf axils, emitting a faint but sweet fragrance, especially on warm summer days. There are no known specific uses for the lady's mantle, but the lady's mantle is known as a medicinal herb, has been used for dyeing, and is associated with various superstitions. It is likely that the lady's mantle has similar properties as it is a related species.

Chickweed wintergreen (Trientalis europaea) is found almost exclusively in East Iceland, being most common in the East Fjords. The chickweed wintergreen is the only species of the Trientalis genus in Iceland and indeed in all of Europe. It is small with a delicate upright stem, and the leaves are of varying sizes, arranged in a whorl on the stem. From the leaf whorl grows the flowering stem, very delicate and with a star-shaped flower, usually with seven white petals. The chickweed wintergreen is easily recognizable by the leaf whorl in the middle of the stem and the seven-petaled flowers. The stems of the chickweed wintergreen grow from fine rhizomes, often forming spreads, creating a star-studded vegetation cover when it blooms in mid-summer. Abroad, the chickweed wintergreen is primarily a forest plant, but in Iceland, it is found in woodlands, meadows, among bilberry shrubs, in damp hollows, on stream banks, and slopes. The chickweed wintergreen has also been named the beautiful flower. It is considered a medicinal herb in old records.

The rock lady (Saxifraga cotyledon) is found in the East Fjords and Southeast Iceland. The rock lady is large and exceptionally beautiful, considered by many to be one of the most ornamental plants in the country's flora. It can be up to 30-40 cm tall, and the flowers, in branched clusters, number in the dozens and even hundreds. Its leaves sit in dense rosettes, thick, spatula-shaped, and hard to the touch, similar to cactus leaves, with fine white teeth or knobs on the edges. The petals are white, sometimes with reddish or yellowish veins. Large flower clusters often bend down when in bloom, sometimes seen hanging from ledges or out of cliff walls. The name "thousand virtues plant" has been used for the rock lady and also for the rock saxifrage. The rock lady is truly a delight in the nature of East Iceland and is cultivated as an ornamental plant, including its varieties originating from Norway.