Erica mammosa (100 seeds)

Erica mammosa.

Family: Ericaceae

Common names: nine-pin heath, rooiklossieheide

It is a slow-growing and long-lived, robust, erect, well-branched shrub, 0.5-1.0 m tall, growing to a height of 1.8 m if left undisturbed. It has small, linear leaves, 6-10 mm long, arranged in whorls of 4 to 6. The flowers are inflated-tubular with a closed mouth and are 15-20 mm long. They form dense spike-like inflorescences, up to 200 mm long, towards the tips of the main branches. The flowers are borne singly or in pairs in the axil of a leaf. Flower colour varies from locality to locality and from bush to bush, ranging from orange-red, purple, dark red, greenish cream, and white, to various shades of pink.

Sowing instructions: Seed should be sown in autumn and treatment with smoke will improve germination, resulting in a higher number of seedlings.

Locality: Clanwilliam. Harvest: August 2024