Iceland On the trail of the fuchsia.
Located in the North Atlantic between Europe and North America, Iceland hangs just below the Arctic Circle. However, it benefits from the warming effects of the North Atlantic Current off the Gulf Stream and it’s coastal climate is considered subpolar oceanic. It’s said that the Viking explorers who named the island over a thousand years ago should have called Iceland Greenland and Greenland Iceland. Because of its position so far north, this Nordic country has long, long summer days that lead to a luxuriant spurt of growth as its plants strive to make up for the lost hours of winter. Almost the summer solstice when we were there and the grass was indeed rich and green. But many trees, such as the charming dwarf birch (Betula nana) and many perennials seemed still to be playing catch-up in the sunshine.
