Endemic Flora
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143 of the roughly 760 plant species growing wild on the island are endemic, that is they grow only on Madeira and nowhere else in the world. One of the stars of the endemic plant world is the so-called Pride of Madeira (Echiun candicans), a type of Echium that produces magnificent mauve candle-like blossoms in sunmer. Also on show in the summer months is the Madeiran foxglove (Isoplexis sceptrum) with its golden yellow blossom in August. Foxgloves can grow to over 3m in height.
No less colourful is the Madeiran cranesbill (Geranium maderense) that endows the floor of evergreen laurel forests with colourful spots of lilac. The yellow flowering Madeiran violet (Viola paradoxa), on the other hand, seems quite inconspicuous. lt can be found in the rocky terrain of the central massif. The Madeiran bilberry (Vaccinium padifolium) is also endemic and produces sweet berries like the one in central Europe. You need to stretch up in order to pick them rather than bend down as the berries grow on man-high bushes. One of the thick-leaved plants to bo mentioned is the Aeonium glandulosum. The plate-like leaf rosettes without stems tuck themselves into rock faces. You might see them on Walks 14 and 37, for example.
The ancient looking dragon tree (Dracaena draco) with its bizarre network of hollow branches has become rare and, apart from on Madeira, it can also be found on the Canary islands. One of the most superb examples stands in the garden of the Reid’s Palace Hotel in Funchal.