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The Ericaceae (/ ˌ ɛr ɪ ˈ k eɪ s i. aɪ,-iː /) are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the heath or heather family, found most commonly in acidic and infertile growing conditions. The family is large, with about 4,250 known species spread across 124 genera, [ 2 ] making it the 14th most species-rich family of flowering plants ...
The English common names heath and heather are shared by some closely related genera of similar appearance. The genus Calluna was formerly included in Erica – it differs in having even smaller scale-leaves (less than 2–3 millimetres long), and the flower corolla consisting of separate petals.
Ericaceous may refer to: Ericaceae, the heather family; Calcifuges, all plants which dislike alkaline (chalky) soil – including heathers, rhododendron and camellia; Ericaceous bed, a bed with acidic soil typically having a pH between 4.5 and 6 used for growing Calcifuges
Calluna vulgaris, common heather, ling, or simply heather, [1] is the sole species in the genus Calluna in the flowering plant family Ericaceae.It is a low-growing evergreen shrub growing to 20 to 50 centimetres (8 to 20 in) tall, or rarely to 1 metre (40 in) and taller, [2] and is found widely in Europe and Asia Minor on acidic soils in open sunny situations and in moderate shade.
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These plants are also described as ericaceous, as the prototypical calcifuge is the genus Erica (heaths). It is not the presence of carbonate or hydroxide ions per se that these plants cannot tolerate, but the fact that under alkaline conditions, iron becomes less soluble.
They do not need soil to grow, absorbing moisture and nutrients through little scale-like structures, called trichomes, on their surfaces. They grow on branches, tree trunks, and rocks.
An ericaceous bed is a bed (or garden) with acidic and often nutrient-poor soil such as ericaceous compost and different types of peat. The pH of the soil is typically between 4.5 and 6. The purpose is to grow a number of garden plants which require (or thrive best in) acidic soil.