Flask Heath

Erica ampullacea (Ericaceae)

With over 800 species of Erica in the Cape, it is not surprising that inventiveness is needed in describing the names of the species. In fact it is even harder than that as many species have inadvertently been described more than once. In total, over 2,000 different names have been…

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Winter Seasoning

Flowering branch of Erica imbricata (Ericaceae)

In colder climates, heath gardens are often created to provide winter colour, but in South Africa most heathers flower in spring or summer. However, there is a common heath, Erica imbricata, that flowers here at Phillipskop from June onwards. The flowers are white but they have contrasting dark brown exserted…

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