Tiny flowers gathered in umbels smother a low, bushy shrub in white through to deep pink, above evergreen foliage. Winter heather (Erica) is grown for its long cold-season display, spreading as ground cover in heath beds, on embankments or in pots on a balcony; give it acid heath soil and it flowers for over five months.
| Name | Erica species |
|---|---|
| Family | Ericaceae |
| Type | heath plant, perennial |
| Height | 4 to 20 inches (10 to 50 cm) |
| Exposure | full sun, part sun |
| Soil | heath soil |
| Foliage | evergreen |
| Flowering | early autumn to early spring |
Caring for it is easy and it is guaranteed to produce a great decorative impact!
Winter heather (also called Erica heather) is best planted at the end of summer or during fall, and even in winter if it doesn’t freeze.
It is also possible to plant heather in spring as long as you can provide for regular watering over the first year after planting.
Water generously at the beginning, especially if it doesn’t rain, and if you can, add maritime pine bark mulch.
Place Erica in close vicinity with camellia, rhododendron and Azalea: that way, you’ll only have to control soil acidity for a single growing bed.
Thanks to its rather slow growth, Erica heather is very well suited to being grown in pots.
You’ll be surprised to see that this plant can stay for years in the same old 12 inch (30 cm)-deep pot.
Erica heather is such an easygoing plant that it requires almost no care.
To regenerate your heather plant, which might grow sparse after a while, you can cut stems down to around 8 inches (20 cm), and repeat this every 3 to 4 years.
For potted Erica heather, it is recommended to add fertilizer every year.
Watering must not be forgotten, especially for potted plants: water as soon as the soil dries up.
Most winter heathers sold in garden centres are cultivars of Erica carnea or of its hybrid Erica × darleyensis, which is taller and more vigorous. The table below sets out the ones you are most likely to find, so you can match flower colour and height to the spot you have in mind.
| Variety | Flower colour | Foliage | Best use |
|---|---|---|---|
| ‘Springwood White’ | Pure white | Bright mid-green | Wide ground cover, edges |
| ‘Myretoun Ruby’ | Deep ruby red | Dark green | Strong colour in pots and troughs |
| ‘Vivellii’ | Magenta | Bronze-red in cold weather | Rockeries, small heath beds |
| ‘Kramer’s Rote’ | Deep magenta | Dark green, bronze new growth | Taller bed filler |
| ‘Silberschmelze’ | Scented white | Dark green | Scent near paths and doorways |
| ‘Springwood Pink’ | Rose pink | Mid-green | Embankments, spreading carpets |
| ‘Darley Dale’ | Pale mauve-pink | Mid-green, cream tips | Long-flowering hedging strip |
The word heather covers several different plants, and they do not flower at the same time of year. Here is how the three named in this article differ.
| Heather | Botanical name | Flowering season | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter heather | Erica species | Fall to winter | Ground cover, edges, embankments and pots |
| Summer heather | Calluna vulgaris | Summer | Flowering when the Erica types are resting |
| Snow heather | Erica carnea | Fall to winter | The coldest gardens |
Choosing one of each keeps a heath bed in flower for much of the year.
Native to South Africa, Erica heather is a short shrub that produces cute flowers grouped in umbels that bloom from fall to winter.
This perennial usually covers surfaces well which can be interesting, and its bushy appearance and abundant flowers will certainly make for a beautiful addition to your garden.
Even though it flowers for over 5 months every year, Erica heath only needs little care and adapts equally well to rocks, edges and embankments – and your garden boxes, too.
Indeed, balconies and terraces are perfect locations for this plant because growing in pots is ideal and its low maintenance requirements make it easy to care for.
It is perfect for heath flower beds, covering the ground, and in garden boxes and pot assemblies.
Erica is the type of heather that is also called winter heather, whereas summer heather, or Calluna vulgaris, is the plant that blooms in summer. There’s also another variety called snow heather (Erica carnea), which does great in even the coldest climates.
Erica heath plants don’t like hard water, so if tap water is hard in your area, add a dash of vinegar or the juice from half a lemon in your watering can before water.
