The scent of blossoms is all-pervasive. The olive trees are giving out their special heady aroma at the moment, which will shortly be replaced by the fragrant clematis, a beautiful white-flowered creeping plant which spreads unobtrusively over earth and stones, bursts into pretty scented flowers, and then fades into the background until the next season. But of all the sweet-scented plants in the air right now, the wild lily has to be one of the most powerful.

Lilies are said to have many medicinal properties. Lidija Doutlik from Ivan Dolac tells me she makes a soothing fluid which is extremely effective for treating minor skin burns simply by adding lily flowers to a jar of olive oil. The flowers don't have to be completely fresh, but the anthers should still contain pollen. The flowers can remain in the oil indefinitely. The traditional time for soaking flowers in olive oil is forty days, but the oil can probably be used before that. (As with any self-help measures, always seek professional advice first.)

Many thanks to the Doutlik family from Ivan Dolac for the photographs of wild lilies growing in profusion near their village.

© Vivian Grisogono 2014