Heath plants come out of the nursery pot with their roots crossing tightly over one another, ready for a hole four to five times wider than the clump. They ask for acidic, cool, well-drained soil, and given that — plus heath soil packed round the roots — even a garden too acidic for ordinary plants will flourish.
After having been grown in a container in a nursery, your plant will move to a new environment to which it must adapt.
Carefully follow each of the steps sequenced below.
This will guarantee that your heath plant will grow beautifully!
Planting heath plants
Dig a hole 4 to 5 times wider than the clump of the plant you are transferring. Usually heath trees and shrubs are sold in containers about 6 to 10 inches across (15 to 25 cm).
Hole diameter
Hole depth
Trees
32 inches (80 cm)
40 inches (1 m)
Shrubs
24 inches (60 cm)
20 inches (50 cm)
Break up the soil that was dug out, removing rocks and pieces of wood.
Mix this soil with heath soil (⅓ soil to ⅔ heath soil).
Let the root clump sit in a bucket of water for a few minutes to re-hydrate soil and roots.
Carefully run your fingers or a tool to untangle roots without wounding them, since they usually tend to cross over each other.
At the bottom of the hole, place a little bit of granulated organic heath plant fertilizer.
Place your plant in the hole, carefully spreading the roots out along the bottom. If the soil is very chalky, place a felt mat at the bottom of the hole to create a pocket of heath soil.
Fill the remaining space in the hole with heath soil.
Lightly compact the soil
Water abundantly.
Heath plants worth planting
Heath soil opens the door to some of the most rewarding shrubs in cultivation. These are the acid-lovers you will find in almost any garden centre, chosen here for habit, flowering season and final size.
Heath plants worth planting
Variety
Type
Flowering season
Height
‘Springwood White’
Spreading ground-cover heath
Midwinter to early spring
6 in (15 cm)
‘Nikko Blue’
Deciduous mophead shrub
Midsummer to early autumn
5 ft (1.5 m)
‘Hino-crimson’
Low evergreen azalea
Mid to late spring
2 ft (60 cm)
‘Forest Flame’
Upright evergreen shrub
Early to mid-spring
10 ft (3 m)
‘Firefly’
Dwarf evergreen heather
Late summer to early autumn
16 in (40 cm)
‘Adolphe Audusson’
Large evergreen shrub
Late winter to mid-spring
10 ft (3 m)
‘Rubella’
Compact evergreen shrub
Buds all winter, flowers mid-spring
3 ft (1 m)
‘Bluecrop’
Deciduous fruiting shrub
Flowers mid-spring, fruit midsummer
5 ft (1.5 m)
Smart tip for heath plants
For trees or shrubs that are over 40 inches (1 m) tall, you must stake them upon planting! As you see, having soil that is too acidic for “normal” plants doesn’t mean you can’t grow a beautiful garden!
Written by Gaspard Lorthiois | Loves helping out, especially when it comes to growing things. Worked in herbal medicine, runs a farm, and dabbles in tech. Master's degree and engineer.
