Heathers and heaths are often mistaken for each other, perhaps because they are from the same family, Ericaceae, but each from a different genus.
- Heathers belong to the genus Calluna. Heather (Calluna vulgaris) is also called common heather or ling. This is the only true heather; all true heathers have their beginnings from it and there are well over 500 varieties.
- Heaths, under the genus Erica, include more than 800 species and countless cultivars. Heaths tend to offer a wider range of foliage and bloom color than heathers.
Other than the fact of heath not tolerating cold weather as well as heather, it is not easy to tell them apart. There are differences in leaf and flower structures. If you have the opportunity to compare them, you will see the Heather’s leaves (genus Calluna) look like tiny feathers while the leaves of the Heath (genus Erica) have leaves that look like sharp little teeth.
The name Heather seems to have evolved from the Scottish “haeddre”, a word they used to describe a heathland, or a shrubland habitat. Heathers are native to Scotland, Ireland, Russia, Scandinavia and North America, although they are now found in Siberia, Morocco, Turkey and portions of Western Europe.
These (mostly) evergreen sub-shrubs offer persistent foliage able to flourish in difficult places and under very cold conditions. Some heathers can bloom in gardens for most or even all of the year, depending on the conditions. They are a decorative flower, tending to remain under 20 inches in height or width.
Although originally purple or mauve, the hundreds of Heather varieties now available provide an excellent flower color range, from white, pink, lavender, white, magenta, mauve to amethyst. Gardeners working with color palettes can create works of art by offsetting them with complementary or contrasting foliage in coppers, golds or silvery greys.
Heath of the genus Erica are mainly low evergreen shrubs. Most heath species originated in South Africa with the most diverse Heaths coming from the southwestern Cape region, although some do occur naturally in the Mediterranean region and northern Europe. The bulk of the species introduced to North America are cultivated as ornamentals.
The Erica species and their varieties have prominent corollas (petals) and small calyxes (sepals) which gives them the effect of a two-tone coloring. The flowers usually have 4 sepals and 4 tubular corollas (ring of petals). The small, narrow leaves are arranged in whorls in close proximity to each other along the shoots.
True heaths, with their amazing range of bloom color and foliage, also range in height and hardiness. Varieties such as the blood-red South African Erica cruenta have such specific requirements they are best tended to by specialists. Some of the lovely African species grow into large bushes or trees.
In the mid-1500s information on heather was first recorded by William Turner when he wrote of the people of England and Germany constructing brushes from the plants. Interestingly, this is reflected in the botanical name “Calluna vulgaris”: Calluna is derived from the Greek word “kallune”’ which translates to “clean or brush” and Vulgaris refers to something that is common, such as an everyday broom or brush.
In Scotland heather was (and still is) celebrated. It was traditionally used to thatch roofs, as fuel and flavoring added to beer. Heather was also used in a therapeutic type of bed mattress because of the sleep-inducing aroma of its dried flowers. In the 1700s the wool used to weave the famous Scottish tartans were tinted yellow-orange with a pigment from the heather plant.
Common heather has many uses even today: cosmetically in shampoos, lotions, baths and perfumes, as flavoring agent for tea, beer and wine, plus strongly influencing the taste and texture of the honey from bees (when their hives are placed near fields of heather). It is also still used as bedding and pillow stuffing as well as in the manufacture of ropes, baskets and packaging materials.
Scotland’s long history holds evidence of their use of heather for making tea, but also some of the earliest historical reports of ale. Archeologists found traces of a fermented heather drink on a pottery shard on the tiny Isle of Rum which was estimated to be 3,000 years old. In those times they did not have malt or hops, so they had to rely on Heather to flavor and fuel the fermentation process.
There is a little celebration of the brew within first lines of a poem by Robert Louis Stevenson:
‘From the bonny bells of heather,
They brew a drink Langsyn
Was sweeter far than honey
Was stronger far than wine.’
There is a rich tapestry of customs, stories and beliefs around white Heather. Many of those legends attribute white Heather with the ability to bring general good luck, fortunate marriages and victory in battle.
In 1884 Queen Victoria’s correspondence to Mr. Brown, her servant, reveals her favor and delight when he told her he had “espied a piece of white heather, and jumped off to pick it” during his travels.
Some say white heather grew over the final resting places of fairies while others said they grew in places where no blood was shed during ancient battles. In 1544 the Ronald clan won a battle and attributed the victory to their habit of tucking sprigs of heather in their headgear.
As mentioned, humans’ beneficial relationship with heather and heath has already lasted for thousands of years. Herbalists have classified these beautiful plants as having warming and drying qualities. A bath of heather tops was a traditional remedy to ease rheumatic pain and the tea, often served with honey, is considered to have a sedative effect.
The Bach flower remedy people say using their “Heather Flower Remedy” product “helps improve personal relationships for people who always want to talk about their own issues, and don’t like being left alone”. The use of this flower remedy is said to assist one in becoming a better listener, more able to create a give and take exchange in relationships. What a wonderful gift in these times when the world could do with more of us living in balanced relationship with others!
Learning more about these and other plants is an incredible opportunity to explore and expand a whole layer of life.