All about the daffodil blossoms/photo: Avi Ben David, Gila Jacobi Gurvitz
Winter blooms are colorful and refreshing and the common species include anemones, primroses, Israeli Iris Haaretz, spring savion and of course almonds.
Yael Zilberstein-Barzida, director of the Urban Nature Surveys Unit at the Nature Protection Society, recently documented and mapped the impressive concentrations of blossoms, from north to south, in areas where it is permitted to walk according to the instructions of the Home Front Command.
More on the subject:
The flowers are out: what can you see blooming now in nature?
You don't have to travel far: a flowering guide for irises that bloom near the house,
they are already blooming.
Where will you see almonds in Israel?
I have a bloom: 4 places to see flowers a minute away from the
Tel Shuka car: a route to the lupine blossoms in Emek Elah,
the King of the Egg appears to be in the desert: a trip to the daffodils in the gravel stream
and thanks to the tulips: the mysterious hill between the mountain and the sea that turned red with flowers
Add some color to your life - the blooming is in full swing/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
Israeli engagement
The flower:
Israeli Iris.
It is a geophyte on which they resemble a bar - straight but curved - and are white in color with a yellowish stripe in the center.
The iris, also known as iris, blooms only in the Land of Israel and the Syrian region.
Where it blooms:
Grows at the foot of mountains and its significant carpets, it is found in the Galilee, Carmel, the Menashe Mountains, the Judean Mountains, the Shefala, Harbat Malach (north of Laur Akiva) and Tel Hadid in the Ben Shemen forest.
When:
a short flowering period, for each flower, between December and February.
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Iros Eretz Israeli/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
Common anemone
The flower:
the anemone is a protected flower.
Perennial and widespread geophyte from the north of Israel to the Negev Mountains.
Besides the bright red color, anemones can also appear in a variety of colors such as blue-purple-white depending on the soil on which it grows.
How do we distinguish between the anemone and the bulb and the poppy?
"One of the most prominent rules of thumb for identification is that the anemone usually has a white ring around the black stamens, like a wedding dress, hence its name. The poppy has a black dot on each petal and it grows in the later stages of the flowering season," says Yael.
Where it blooms:
You can see anemones in Tel Azkah, in a field south of the Ein Hayam neighborhood in Hadera, Nahal Zimari in the Jerusalem mountains near the neighborhood of Pisgat Ze'ev, in the Afka caves in Ramat Hasharon on the border of Tel Aviv, and of course in the Western Negev region, for example in Nahal Boho in Netivot.
Colorful anemones (purple, white) can be seen in the Shalom Valley in Yokneam and of course in the Megiddo Valley.
When:
December-March.
Purple anemone in the Yakneam area/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
Asian bulb
The flower:
a perennial geophyte, a flower protected and shining in its red color.
Some confuse it with anemones, but the bulbs do not have a white mark around the stamens, and there are no black dots on the petals as in the poppy, which blooms later in the season.
Where it blooms:
Blooms in the center and north of the country starting in February.
It is widely distributed in the country.
Among other things, you can meet her in Ramat Hanadiv Nature Park and next to Nahal Yeshai in Beit Shemesh, where these photos were taken.
When:
February-May.
Nurit Asia/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
Common cyclamen
The flower:
the cyclamen is a geophyte (a plant with a thickened rhizome or a bulb or a tuber), a protected flower that is common in almost all parts of the country and grows in the shade of rocks as in the song "Under the rock a very nice cyclamen grows wonderfully".
In its cocoon there is a toxic substance that protects it from being eaten by animals.
The petals are turned upwards, like a crown and in Israel there are two types of cyclamen - Greek and Mtzoya.
Where it blooms:
large carpets of primroses can be found in the Langa grove in Zichron Yaakov, in the primrose hills in Kochav Yair and Gilead, in the Shoham forest and on the Maagan Michael ridge.
When:
November-March.
Cyclades/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
Land of Israel lupine
The flower:
the Eretz Israeli lupine is the most common of the lupines in Israel, growing mainly on the coastal plain in the Hamra lands.
The bloom in the inflorescence starts from the lower part gradually, the bloom rises to the top end of the flower.
Two other important types of lupines are the mountain lupine and the yellow lupine.
The purple mountain lupine, as it is called, grows in the mountains, but can be hybridized with the native Israeli species in a way that harms the preservation of the species.
The mountain lupine is sometimes protected in private gardens and invades adjacent natural areas.
Yellow lupine is a rare species in danger of extinction, it is also typical of Hamra areas in the center of the country.
Where it blooms:
The flowers are white-pink in color and you can see beautiful carpets of bloom in the Sharon region.
You can meet Eretz Israeli iris in the reserves on the coastal plain such as the Beitan Aharon reserve for example, Bnei Zion and the Sharon coast alongside its flowering in urban natural areas in Pardes Hana Karkur, Ramat Hasharon, Netanya and more.
When:
February-April.
Land of Israel lupine in the Red Iris Reserve in Netanya/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
Savion Spring
The flower:
despite its name, spring savion, does not grow in the spring but rather in the winter, between January and March.
It is a small annual plant that blooms in masses and produces impressive yellow blossom spots, it is not endangered and not protected.
If you dry it, it is very easy to explain the distribution of the seeds by the wind.
Where it blooms:
We will meet in any open area that is not sprayed.
When:
November-May
Savion Avivi/Nature and Gardens Authority, Ofer Shanar
Densimore's bumble bee
The flower:
the Densimore bumblebee is a beautiful flower, its flower is small and resembles a model of a bee, thus it attracts bees for pollination.
Even a bolt is masquerading as the scent of a female bee to attract pollinators.
This is a protected geophyte, from the orchid family, its distribution is throughout the Mediterranean region in Israel and the Middle East and it is the relatively common species.
Where it blooms:
You can meet it in the Carmel Park, Nahal Polg, Ben Shemen Forest and many other locations.
When:
January-April.
Dvornit Densimore/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
The crimson iris
The flower:
The crimson iris is an impressive, striking and impressive flower.
He is the first of the 8 temple engagements, the first among them to bloom.
The name of these irises is given to them because the iris includes an area inside it, just like a "temple" where the pollinators can find hiding and rest and in fact in the process they will transfer pollen from plant to plant and pollinate it.
The hall irises are protected species which of course must not be picked.
Where it blooms:
Mainly in the coastal area and the prominent locations where it blooms are the Scarlet Iris Reserve in Netanya (which is not a nature reserve but an urban nature site managed by an urban ecologist) and the Kurkar Hills of Nes Ziona, where volunteer residents help protect the bloom concentrations.
When:
January-March
The purple iris in the Givaot HaKurkar National Park, Nes Ziona/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
common daffodil
The flower:
the fragrant daffodils, the kings of the marsh, are geophytes with white blooms, and stories and legends have been associated with them, since Greek mythology in which the story of the elm narcissus, who became a symbol of self-love, is known, to the stories of Narcissus, the king of the marsh.
Intensive agricultural cultivation wiped out a large part of the daffodil populations in the valleys, and wild picking also damaged the populations.
Today, daffodils in Israel are protected by law.
Where it blooms:
Blooms among the rocks in Ashlon, Chachatz and Dimona creeks.
When:
November-February
Daffodils in the Negev/Walla! System, Shay Yegal
common almond
The flower:
the protected almond trees are trees that fall and their flowers bloom in the winter, depending on the climate where the tree grows and the amount of warm days between the cold rain events.
Thus, each detail blooms at a different time.
"The common almond, or almond tree, is famous for its beautiful and dense blossoms, in white to pink colors. Being the first tree to bloom in the warm Israeli winter, it heralds spring ahead of time," Zilberstein-Barzida adds.
Where it blooms:
Blooms in various places in the country, including Modi'in, the Carmel Ridge and the Jerusalem Mountains.
High concentrations can be found in the Judean Mountains - Steph, Subb Mbarsheret Zion, Beit Zeit Dam, Ein Kerem and the surrounding area.
When:
December-March.
Shakdia in the slopes of the Gilboa/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Avner Rinot
Egyptian carnation
The flower:
the Egyptian carnation, from the nail family, pinkish, has five petals around the stamens.
The flower grows in tea areas and fields and can be identified by its bursting petals.
Where it blooms:
widespread almost throughout the country except in the desert.
When:
January-April.
Egyptian Clove/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Yael Zilberstein-Barzida
Carmelite is handsome
The flower:
a beautiful Carmelite, from the cruciferous family, oval and has four petals, each in the shape of a heart, arranged in a shape similar to a cross and hence its name, after the name of the order of the Carmelites or perhaps from its wide distribution in Carmel.
Where it blooms:
common in the Carmel, Galilee, Gilboa and Golan regions.
When:
December-April.
Carmelit Nea/The Society for the Protection of Nature, Urban Nature Unit
For more flowers and suggestions for trips, go to
Walla's flower routes page!
More on the same topic:
Flowering
Trips in the country
Tracks