People in the Karst know that when the amethyst eryngo or amethyst sea holly Eryngium amethystinum
turns blue, summertime has reached its climax. This
attractive flower of the Apiaceae family is found across dry grasslands
of the Karst where it can be very common. It also grows in a few other
ares of western and southern Slovenia, always favouring dry meadows. The
first flowers already appear at the beginning of July, when they are
still well concealed in the grass, due to their ice-green colour. As the
season advances, they slowly aquire the distinctive blue tinge and by
August, most of them become deep blue. This "colouring" process is
also typical of other members of the genus Eryngium, for example sea holly Eryngium maritimum and Alpine sea holly Eryngium alpinum.
Amethyst eryngo is one of the very few flowers on dry meadows at this time of year (and through autumn) and so it attracts a great variety of insects, especially butterflies...
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| Silver-studded Blue Plebejus argus |
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| Common Blue Polyommatus icarus |
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| False Grayling Arethusana arethusa |
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| Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina |
