Inland cliffs, valley sides and fortifications are home to many endemic plants. Typical plants include Maltese salt tree, Maltese rock centaury, Maltese everlasting, Maltese cliff-orache, caper and white snapdragon. Coastal communities are divided into three habitats. It is an environment where plants have to adapt to drought, salt and shifting sands. The typical tree is the tamarisk and plants include sea holly and sea daffodil.
Rocky shores contain patches of shallow and saline soil.
Only salt tolerant species of plants survive and these include golden samphire and the endemic Zerapha s sea lavender. Saline marshland forms a boundary between the marine, freshwater and terrestrial environment. During the wet season rainwater mixes with salt water to form brackish water. This environment is home to many specialised flora, which include rushes, reeds and golden samphire. Freshwater is normally found in valleys and watercourses.