Whatever your soil, plant Winter heathers

Dainty flowers and contrasting evergreen foliage – choose Erica for a double whammy of winter interest from plants that are not picky about the pH, says Graham Rice

- Graham Rice

THERE’S an old song that goes: And we’ll all go together/To pull wild mountain thyme/All around the bloomin’ heather”. I always thought there was something not quite right about those lines; and as soon as we start to think about heathers, it becomes clear why.

Our native heather of the Scottish and Pennine hillsides is Calluna, which grows in vast acreages on sunny slopes on acid soil, shading out smaller plants. It hates lime and chalk. Wild thyme also grows on sunny hillsides, yes – but most noticeably on chalk downs, where no British wild heather would thrive. So you’re unlikely to see thyme and heather growing alongside one another in the wild.

In gardens, it’s different. Here we can plant heather in any soil, even chalk – just as long as we opt for the winter heath, Erica carnea, and its taller relation E. x darleyensis. These are the heathers for everyone, happily performing in soils that would turn other species sickly, leaving nothing but a tuft of twigs. Aside from growing enthusiastically where most heathers will not, these plants have plenty to commend them. Firstly, they open their dainty little red, purplish, pink or white bells just when we need them most – from November to April, depending on variety.

Then there’s the fact that the blooms are set against bushy evergreen growth. The foliage of many varieties is a valuable feature in itself, especially in winter, with its yellow, golden, amber or even orange tones, as well as bronze. Some varieties offer a combination of both flower and foliage appeal.

Year-round displays