Erica cerinthoides Rubra - fire heath

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Only 140 left

$5.95

Fire heath is a perfect common name for this evergreen plant, as it has the fine slender foliage of a heath or heather (and like many of our native shrubs too); when it bursts into bloom in spring the orange-red flowers look like flames.

Not often seen for sale, fire heath is a lovely plant for acid soils and frost-free gardens, and in native gardens that don't mind the occasional exotic lookalike.

We love fire heath for its glowing colour, compact size, low maintenance

Flowering images : Bernard Dupont ; Wilferd Duckitt cropped to size.

We can't ship this product to Tasmania, Western Australia.

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Description

Erica cerinthoides ‘Rubra’ - fire heath

APPEARANCE : Compact open shrubby plant, with slender deep green evergreen leaves like a conifer or heather. Orange-red clusters of tubular flowers appear in spring into summer. In the wild it can regenrate from its woody roots after bushfire. RHS Award of Garden Merit.
ORIGIN : South Africa
USE FOR : Feature shrub, container plant, rockery, mixed border, pairs well with slender-leaved native plants and with acid-lovers like camellias, azaleas and gardenias. Nectar-rich flowers for birds and butterflies.
CLIMATE : Frost free
PLANTING : Plant in acid to neutral pH soil, moist well drained loam or sandy loam, in sun or part shade. Mulch and water regularly until the plant is established, usually around 12 weeks.
CARE : Water well in warmer months when plant is in flower, and less so in cooler ones; feed lightly during the flowering season. Generally pest and disease resistant in well-drained soils. A light clip over after flowering has finished will encourage a bushier habit and more blooms next year.
MATURE HEIGHT & WIDTH : 1 - 1.5m H x 0.5 - 1m W.
YOUR PLANTS : These are tubestock plants, healthy young plants with new roots that will establish quickly in your garden. The pot size is 80mm high and 42 mm wide.
You can see an example in the image gallery.
What is tubestock?

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