Xela's Garden
Heather [V]
Genus: Calluna.
Species: Calluna vulgaris.
Calluna
Common name; Ling / Scotch Heather
Heathers are evergreen branching shrubs that make good all year round (Note; This is only practical if you plant out a mixture of summer and winter flowering varieties.) ground-cover and rock gardens plants.
The scientific name, Calluna vulgaris, comes from the greek word; Kallune meaning to clean or brush, and vulgaris is from the Latin word for common.
The term 'Ling' is derived either from the old Norse word Lyng or from the Anglo Saxon word Lig meaning fire, and refers to its use as a fuel.
The word 'Heather' is of Scottish origin from the Scots word Haeddre.
They are native to Ireland,northern North America,Russia,Scandinavia,and Scotland.
The wild species usually have purple or mauve flowers.
Cultivated varieties can have colours ranging from white, through pink, to a wide range of purples, and reds.
Subject to variety they will bloom from late July to November.
The flowers may turn brown and remain on the plants over winter,which can giveinteresting effects when covered with frost or snow.
Erica arborea alpina is a compact tree heather suitable for a wide range of gardens, and in spring is covered in fragrant white flowers set against bright green young foliage.
All heathers prefer full sun and well-drained, acidic soil similar to that found on moor and heathland, plus protection from cold winter winds.
Heather plants can be planted at anytime providing the ground is not frozen.
Seeds are produced in very large numbers which self seed, hence its its abundance on moor and heathland.
An annual top-dressing of peat helps to conserve moisture.
Cut back winter and spring-flowering heathers after flowering.
Cultivation:
Week 13; Tidy up around plants by dead heading, weeding, and applying a bark or peat mulch.
Poor foliage color, and or stunted growth could indicate a need for feeding.
The best time to feed them is in late winter or late spring.
Feed with an ericaceous liquid feed to manufacturers specification.
Watering is essential on all soils during spring and dry spells.
Week 14; Large plants may also be propagated by layering.
Select healthy stems from the outside of the plants, bend these down to soil level, then bury them under the soil with only their tips showing.
Keep the layers in position for a year or so with stones or bent wire pegs.
When rooted they can then be severed from the parent plants and set out in their permanent positions.
Week 28; Root batches of erica cuttings anytime from now until September.
Artificial heat is not essential, but they will root more rapidly if given the protection of a cold greenhouse or frame.
Use a well-drained, lime-free (ericaceous) compost, take care not to let it dry out completely, and shade cuttings from hot sun.
Tip growth may be pinched out, or gently pull off side-shoots about 25mm (1”) long.
Where side-shoots are used, trim back excessively long 'tails' or 'heels' of old wood with a sharp blade.
Removal of lower leaves is not usually necessary.
If you have under soil heating and mist facilities, cuttings up to 50mm (2”) may be used.
Fill containers with a lime-free ericaceous compost, or home mix, consisting of two parts sharp sand and one part moss peat.
Insert cuttings to a depth of 12mm (½")
You can root 50 cuttings in a 125mm (5”) pan, but for greater numbers use trays.
Root cuttings in a cold frame, enclose in polythene bag, or cover with proprietary plastic propagator lid.
When the cuttings have rooted, grow on in a nursery bed, a cold greenhouse or a cold frame.
Transplant the cuttings to their flowering quarters when they are about 75mm (3") high.
Week 40; Check the soil ph prior to planting.
Normally heathers are best grown in peaty, acid soils, but they will tolerate many others, providing some preparation is done prior to planting out.
Select an open position in full sun.
Dig the ground thoroughly, and rake bone-meal into the topsoil at the rate of 100gms (4oz) per sq metre, then add a 50mm (2") mulch of peat.
Heavy soils should be lightened with the addition of river sand, peat or well rotted farmyard manure or compost.
Plants will not stand water-logged conditions.
Plant out in groups, setting the plants 300-400mm (12”-15”) apart, up to 600mm (24”) for larger types.
Set them with the lowest shoots at ground level,firm the soil around the plant and water-in,then mulch with peat, or bark chippings.
Note; be careful not to pile mulch up over the lower branches.
Week 42; Trim tall-growing varieties lightly with shears before new growth starts, to prevent legginess.
[Source: http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Data/Calluna/Calluna.htm ]
Adopted from Mother's Freeland garden:
Calluna vulgaris 'Sir John Charrington'
Home | Plants > Plant Selector > Calluna vulgaris 'Sir John Charrington'
Plant type: Shrub
Habit: Mat forming
Hardiness: H4 (hardy)
Colour
Flower:
Pink and Pale Purple in Autumn and Summer
Foliage:
Orange and Yellow in Autumn, Spring and Summer
Red in Winter
Size
Ultimate height: 0.1-0.5 metres
Ultimate spread: 0.1-0.5 metres
Time to ultimate height:5-10 years
Preferred common name:heather 'Sir John Charrington'
Family:Ericaceae
Calluna are low-growing or dwarf evergreen shrubs with stems clothed in tiny overlapping leaves, and terminal, spike-like racemes of small, 4-petalled flowers with coloured calyces
'Sir John Charrington' is a spreading evergreen shrub, compact in habit, with foliage yellow and orange in summer, becoming reddish in winter. Flowers mauve-pink in short racemes
How to grow:
Sunlight: Full sun
Aspect:
North-facing, South-facing, East-facing or West-facing
Exposed or Sheltered
Cultivation:
Grow in well-drained acidic soil
Propagation:
Propagate by semi-hardwood cuttings:
Semi-ripe cuttings are selected from this season’s growth. The base of the cutting should be hard, while the tip is still soft. This material is available in late summer until mid-autumn.
Suggested planting locations and garden types:
Ground Cover or Low Maintenance
How to care
Pruning: Timing: Prune immediately after flowering where flowering is on the previous year's growth, or in the subsequent early to mid-spring if flowering is on the current year's growth.
These flower on the previous year's growth in spring or early summer, or on the current year's growth in late summer and autumn. Remove shoots that have flowered to within 1.5-2.5cm (¾-1in) of the previous year's growth.
Pests:Generally pest free
[Source: http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=291 ]
