Editing Milos (section)

== Natural resources ==
=== Volcanic minerals ===
[[File:Milos mine.jpg|thumb|left|200px|View of an old sulfur mine at Thiorichia beach.]]
[[File:Sikiacavemilo.JPG|thumb|The Cave of Sikia from interior.]]
[[File:Milos-1.jpg|thumb|The bay of Milos]]

[[Bentonite]], [[perlite]], [[pozzolana]] and small quantities of [[kaolin]] are actively collected via [[strip mine]] or [[open-pit mine]] techniques in Milos and sold all over the world. In the past, [[baryte]], [[sulfur]], millstones and [[gypsum]] were also mined; [[Pliny the Elder]] notes that Milos was the most abundant source of sulfur in the ancient world.<ref>C. Michael Hogan (2011). [http://www.eoearth.org/article/Sulfur?topic=49557 ''Sulfur''. Encyclopedia of Earth, eds. A. Jorgensen and C.J. Cleveland, National Council for Science and the environment, Washington DC] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121028080550/http://www.eoearth.org/article/Sulfur?topic=49557 |date=2012-10-28 }}</ref> In ancient times the [[alum]] of Milos was reckoned next to that of [[Egypt]] (Pliny xxxv. 15 [52]). The Melian earth was employed as a [[pigment]] by ancient artists. Milos was a source of [[obsidian]] during the Neolithic ages for the Aegean and Mediterranean.

=== Agricultural crops ===
[[Orange (fruit)|Orange]], [[olive]], [[Mediterranean Cypress|cypress]], tamarisk, juniper (''[[Juniperus oxycedrus]]'') and [[arbutus]] trees grow throughout the island, which, however, is too dry to have any profusion of vegetation. [[Vine]]s, [[cotton]], and [[barley]] are the main crops.

=== Medicinal plants ===
Almost all of the uninhabited western region of Milos is a [[Natura 2000]] site and is home to over 800 different [[taxa]], including 35 which are [[Endemism|endemic]] to Greece. In an [[Ethnobotany|ethnobotanical survey]] of Milos, numerous native and cultivated species were described as being used to treat a variety of conditions and for other purposes such as [[insect repellent]]s, disinfectants, and to protect against the [[evil eye]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Perouli |first1=Mary |last2=Bareka |first2=Pepy |date=2022-04-26 |title=Ethnobotanical survey on medicinal plants from Milos island (Kiklades Islands, Greece) |url=https://revistas.ucm.es/index.php/MBOT/article/view/75357 |journal=Mediterranean Botany |volume=43 |pages=e75357 |doi=10.5209/mbot.75357 |issn=2603-9109|doi-access=free }}</ref> The most frequently reported species was [[Greek sage]]. Local historical records of medicinal plant use date back to the 16th century.