The people of Iceland adore their national flower, the white dryads. Though dryads in Greek mythology referred to a nymph in the wood, white dryads is not a flower to be seen easily in the wild. These highly attractive flowers are found in the shapes of saucers and contain about seven to ten petals of creamy white colour. The plant itself is very attractive with the distinct seed heads and is quite popular among the people of the country.

The plant is well known for its ability to bear the severe calamities of nature and suggest a grave symbolic truth about surviving the rigours of life to the people of the country. These widely adored hermaphrodite flowers can be found in the sun-soaked gravels and rocky barrens, meadows as well as the ridges of Iceland. The decorative appearance of the plant and the ornamental flowers has made it a popular garden plant. The flower is also preserved as cut flowers due to its longer life span.

The plant also has many other uses in Iceland. The seed heads and the flowers of white dryads are used for the production of a green dye. In the olden days the arctic people used the flower to keep a track of time and it was known as the ‘time keeper’.