Biology
provided by Arkive
Bell heather flowers are pollinated by bumblebees or may be self-fertilised (2).
Conservation
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Although conservation action has not been targeted at this species, it is an important component species of many heathland communities, which are being protected via Habitat Action Plans under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UK BAP) (5).
Description
provided by Arkive
Bell heather is a feature of dry heaths where it grows to heights of 60 centimetres. The small leaves are dark green in colour, and the reddish-purple flowers occur in groups (2). Heather has been put to many uses over the years. It has been used as a bedding material for livestock and humans, bundles have been used as brooms or to thatch roofs, it has been burnt as a fuel, wound into ropes, and used to repair holes in trackways and roads (4).
Habitat
provided by Arkive
Occurs on the drier heaths on thin, acidic or peaty soils and in Scot's pine (Pinus sylvestris) or oak (Quercus) woodlands with open canopies (3). Tends not to be found in wetter places (5).
Range
provided by Arkive
This heather is common throughout the British Isles, but becomes scarce in the English Midlands and has undergone a severe decline in southern England (3). It occurs throughout western Europe, reaching as far north as Norway and east to northern Italy (2).
Status
provided by Arkive
Not threatened (3).
Threats
provided by Arkive
The decline of this species in England is the result of large scale loss of heathland. In chalk heath sites, a reduction in sheep and rabbit grazing has resulted in the growth of grasses and scrub, which has resulted in the loss of this species at these sites (3).
Associations
provided by BioImages, the virtual fieldguide, UK
In Great Britain and/or Ireland:
Foodplant / feeds on
adult of Ceratothrips ericae feeds on live flower of Erica cinerea
Foodplant / saprobe
superficial, subiculate pseudothecium of Protoventuria straussii is saprobic on newly dead stem of Erica cinerea
Remarks: season: 4-5
Comprehensive Description
provided by North American Flora
Erica cinerea ly. Sp. PI. 352. 1753
A shrub mostly 4 dm. tall or less, with minutely and inconspicuously pubescent branches; leaves whorled in 3's, the blades linear to subulate on account of the strongly revolute margins, 2-7 mm. long, acute, glabrous or nearly so; flowers in racemed or panicled clusters; calyx-lobes linear-lanceolate to subulate, 2.5-3 mm. long, ciliolate, sometimes obscurely so; corolla reddishpurple, 6-7 mm. long; filaments mostly 4.5-5 mm. long; capsules 2-2.5 mm. in diameter.
Type locality: Middle Europe.
Distribution: Nantucket Island, Massachusetts; presumably naturalized from Europe.
- bibliographic citation
- John Kunkel Small, NathanieI Lord Britton, Per Axel Rydberg, LeRoy Abrams. 1914. ERICALES, CLETHRACEAE, LENNOACEAE, PTROLACEAE, MONOTROPACEAE, ERICACEAE, UVA-URSI. North American flora. vol 29(1). New York Botanical Garden, New York, NY
Erica cinerea
provided by wikipedia EN
Erica cinerea, the bell heather,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae, native to western and central Europe.
The plant provides a great deal of nectar for pollinators. It was rated in the top 5 for most nectar production (nectar per unit cover per year) in a UK plants survey conducted by the AgriLand project which is supported by the UK Insect Pollinators Initiative.[3]
Description
It is a low, spreading shrub growing to 15–60 cm (5.9–23.6 in) tall, with fine needle-like leaves 4–8 mm (0.16–0.31 in) long arranged in whorls of three. The flowers are bell-shaped, purple (rarely white), 4–7 mm (0.16–0.28 in) long, produced in mid- to late summer. The flowers are dry, similar in texture to the strawflower.
The Latin specific epithet cinerea means "ash coloured".[4]
Distribution
Erica cinerea is native to the west of Europe, where it is most abundant in Britain and Ireland, France, northern Spain and southern Norway. It also occurs in the Faroe Islands, Belgium, Germany, north-western Italy, and the Netherlands. It mostly occurs on moors and heathland with relatively dry, acidic, nutrient poor soils. It occurs in coastal dune heath and dune slack and occasionally in woodland. It is described as "of least concern" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.[5]
Uses
Bell heather is a source of heather honey.[6]
It is grown as an ornamental plant, cultivated in a wider range of colors. It is drought-tolerant and grows well in full sun with well-drained soil. Like most heathers, it is a calcifuge and dislikes alkaline soils (e.g. calcareous) which cause the symptoms of iron deficiency. Like other cultivated heathers, it is often seen as groundcover among plantings of dwarf conifers.[7]
These cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit:[8]
′Eden Valley′ has lavender flowers shading to white at the base of the corolla and a prostrate habit. The original plant was found on Trink Hill, Cornwall by Miss Gertrude Waterer.[13]
References
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Erica cinerea: Brief Summary
provided by wikipedia EN
Erica cinerea, the bell heather, is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae, native to western and central Europe.
The plant provides a great deal of nectar for pollinators. It was rated in the top 5 for most nectar production (nectar per unit cover per year) in a UK plants survey conducted by the AgriLand project which is supported by the UK Insect Pollinators Initiative.
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- cc-by-sa-3.0
- copyright
- Wikipedia authors and editors
