=> |
aD

ISSN 0440-5757

of the

NY

THE HEATHER SOCIETY

Registered charity No 261407

Affiliated societies
Nederlandse Heidervereniging 'Ericultura’
Gesellschaft der Heidefreunde
North American Heather Society

President
Mr David McClintock TD, FLS.

Vice-Presidents
Mr T. A. Julian
Mrs C. I. MacLeod
Mrs D. Metheny
Major-General P. G. Turpin CB, OBE.

COUNCIL 1994-1995

Chairman
Mr D. J. Small

Honorary Secretary
Mrs P. B. Lee

Honorary Treasurer

Mr A. Hall
Mr R. J. Cleevely Mr A. R. Collins
Mr D. M. Edge Mrs D. Everett
Mr A. W. Jones Mrs D. H. Jones JP.
Mr P. L. Joyner Mr D. J. T. Mayne
Dr R. Nichols Mr D. B. Oliver
Mr D. H. E. Rope Miss J. Sharpe

Mr A. J. Stow

NZ!

7

Yearbook, <==
of
The Heather Society

OOS,

Editor
Dr E. Charles Nelson

Assistant Editor
R. J. Cleevely

ISSN 0440-5757

The Heather Society
c/o Denbeigh, All Saints Road, Creeting St Mary, IPSWICH, Suffolk, IP6 8PJ

Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2014

https ://archive.org/details/yearbookofheatheOOheat_30

© The authors & The Heather Society

The Heather Society and the editors take no responsibility for
the views expressed by authors in papers and notes published in
this Yearbook.

COVER PHOTOGRAPH

Erica pageana, a Cape heath that can be cultivated
out-of-doors in the mildest parts of Britain and Ireland,
photographed at Rossdohan, County Kerry, Ireland
{[E. C. Nelson]

FOREWORD

There was close co-operation last year between our Society and the
British Heather Growers Association, much of which is due to the
indefatigable David Small. Now that most major nurseries belong, the
Association can concentrate on ensuring the quality of the heathers
sold in our garden centres which is something we, as a Society, can
applaud. |

Kurt Kramer’s fine new cultivars of Erica carnea are coming
on to the market and his bud-blooming Calluna vulgaris will make
a spectacular entrance in Autumn 1995.

How many members have been able to visit the plant sales
centre at Wisley? There, heathers have a very prominent place with
a wide range on sale. The heather collection in the Royal
Horticultural Society’s Gardens has never looked better and an area
is marked out already for yet another bed. The signposting to that
collection is still poor and climbing the bridge over the public path
en route, deters some visitors. However, those who do come are,
rightly, loud in its praises.

The National Trust reaches its centenary this year. In
recognition of its work, we have two articles in this Yearbook,
explaining the Trust’s involvement with heathers in gardens and in
the wild.

Congratulations are also due to the National Botanic
Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin, on reaching its bicentenary; and to
mark this very special occasion, we have accepted a kind invitation
from the Director, Donal Synnott, to hold our conference there in
September 1995. We hope this will attract members who have not yet
been to a conference to find out just what happy occasions they are.

David McClintock
President

F
Y
as
=)
- We)
a2
g
09)
Z
=]
fe)
=
|
|v
me)
5
o)
=)
Z
|
09)

the

g heathers in

. 1. Spring-flowerin
Ireland [E. C. Nelson].

i

F

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 1-3.

Heathers in National Trust gardens.

SIMON THORNTON-WOOD
The National Trust, 33 Sheep Street, Cirencester GL7 1QW,
Gloucestershire.

One century after the founding of the National Trust, some 160 fine
gardens have been brought under its protection. In earlier days,
during the County Houses Scheme of the 1930s, gardens were
accepted merely as adjuncts to great houses. Since the late 1940s,
however, gardens have been accepted in their own rights as ‘places
of historic interest or natural beauty’.

Throughout history, landowners have expressed themselves and
their times through gardening, investing time and money in
designing schemes and establishing collections that reflected a
variety of interests. The National Trust looks upon its plant
collections — the greatest plant collections in the world — as valuable
assets. The use of heathers across the gardens owned by the Trust
reflects the ideas and aspirations of some of these owners.

One of the finest heather gardens created in England this century
was at Nymans in West Sussex, laid out in 1903 by Ludwig Messel
(Fig. 2). Messel had seen groups of heathers at Kew and thought
them suitable for the sandy loam of Nymans: the much-copied result
established his reputation. An area was shaped with hillocks and
winding paths, before planting with some fifty cultivars of Erica and
Calluna with dwarf rhododendrons, Pieris and Rosa microphylla.

The setting of the rock garden at Cragside in Northumberland
required more dramatic landscaping. In the 1860s, the industrialist
Sir William (later Lord) Armstrong produced an impressive setting for
his house and a home for a bold and interesting collection of
heathers, ferns and alpine plants amongst the grey Carboniferous
limestone, along with thousands of rhododendrons and azaleas.
Large areas of the rock garden have been restored recently with the
planting of a range of large heathers and heaths to appeal to visitors
through the summer, and reflecting the shrubby growth forms
popular at the time: early coloured photographs illustrate the style

»

ie

Fig. 9. The heather garden at Nymans; photograph from The Garden 21 January 1911,

of Cragside. Historical records are, however, poor; only a few
heathers are explicitly mentioned, including Erica vagans ‘Alba’, and
the tall Calluna vulgaris ’Alportii’. Planting, associated with a recent
restoration plan, continues to develop. E. arborea and E. erigena are
growing in profusion, and a spring show of colour is provided by E.
carnea Springwood White’, "Springwood Pink’, and ’Prince of Wales’.
Calluna vulgaris, Erica cinerea and E. vagans cultivars give colour in
August through to October, and winter is brightened by the foliage
of C. vulgaris ’Cuprea’.

One of the greatest collections of plants in the care of the
National Trust is to be found at Mount Stewart in Northern Ireland.
During the 1920s, Lady Londonderry created a ’grand scheme’ of
formal gardens and pleasure-grounds. The Italian Garden is hedged
with older cultivars of Calluna vulgaris such as ’Serlei Aurea’, to
provide a year-round yellowish colour, while Erica arborea crowned
with the purple Clematis jackmanii, forms a centre-piece in the Sunk
Garden (Fig. 1). Erica lusitanica, rhododendrons and camellia provide

3

early spring colour in The Shamrock Garden. Erica canaliculata, from
South Africa, may also be found in sheltered corners of this splendid
garden.

The rock-garden at Emmetts in Kent has recently been reinstated
from the remains of a derelict garden. The design element at
Emmetts is minimal, following the principles and ideas of William
Robinson who advocated that exotics’ ought to be set in a wild
countryside, and that each individual plant should be allowed to
grow unrestricted. An area, demanding fairly high levels of
maintenance, has been established amongst blocks of Cumbrian
limestone, with Erica erigena Superba’, E. arborea’Alpina’, and other
heathers, restoring the feature originally set out in 1937.

Other gardens with heathers include Penrhyn Castle in North
Wales, where tree heaths are scattered around the woodland edge,
and Glendurgan, Cornwall, with double-flowered Calluna vulgaris ’H.
E. Beale’ planted amongst Rhododendron yakushimanum at the
valley head. At Biddulph Grange, Staffordshire, during the
nineteenth century conifers in the Pinetum were grown on mounds
and under-planted with ling gathered on the surrounding moor
which ’seem to transfer the plants at once, in appearance, to their
native hills’.

The conservation of important gardens is a complex process of
balancing different interests. Structure and design, historical
associations, collection influences and ornamental embellishments
provide rich settings for individual plants and demand the highest
standards of maintenance with a minimum number of staff. With
some many Trust gardens scattered throughout England, Wales and
Northern Ireland, there is always more to explore, to learn and to
enjoy.

O Dr Simon Thorton-Wood is Horticultural Taxonomist to The National Trust.

Mi gaan

Heather House, Florence Court,
County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland

The National Trust has recently erected this splendid ‘rustic arbour’
(summerhouse) in the pleasure-garden at Florence Court, one of the
finest eighteenth century (Georgian) mansions in Ireland. The
original thatched pavilion was perhaps built in the mid-eighteenth
century, probably following designs by the Durham author, architect
and garden designer Thomas Wright (1711-1786), but it had rotted
entirely and vanished. Excavations revealed the stone floor and using
old photographs* and other evidence the building was recreated. The
basic structure is timber with wheat straw for the roof thatch and
ling (Calluna vulgaris) as cladding on the outside of the walls. The
heather, remarkably, was imported from Kent, even though the
surrounding hills, especially Cuilcagh Mountain, are covered in
heath. Florence Court demesne is best known for the original mother
tree of the Irish, or Florencecourt, yew (Taxus baccata ’Fastigiata’.

E. Charles Nelson
* see E. MALINS & The Knight of GLIN. 1976. Lost demesnes. Irish landscape
gardening, 1660-1845. p. 80. Barrie & Jenkins, London.

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 5-7.

Wild heathers on National Trust land.

KATHERINE HEARN
The National Trust, 33 Sheep Street, Cirencester GL7 1QW,
Gloucestershire.

As a nature conservation adviser, I probably devote more time to
heather, Calluna vulgaris,, than to any other single plant species. C.
vulgaris is not the only heather, of course, but it is the most catholic,
growing both on damp peat and on very drought-prone mineral soils,
from the far north of Scotland to the tip of the Lizard Peninsula, from
east coast to west and from a few metres above sea level to well over
700 metres altitude.

The other wild heathers are more particular, and it is these,
together with other main associates, which give the 36 different
heathland communities in Britain their distinctive stamps. The main
distinctions is between lowland and upland heaths. In the lowland
heaths, below c. 300 m, Calluna often grows with one or two of the
three gorse species (Ulex spp.); in the uplands with bilberry
(Vaccinium myrtillus) or other dwarf shrubs such as cowberry
(Vaccinium vitis-idaea) and crowberry (Empetrum nigrum).

On the Wealden heaths, for example, Calluna grows with bell
heather (Erica cinerea) and dwarf gorse (Ulex minor); in the New
Forest with bell heather, cross-leaved heath (E. tetralix) and bristle
bent (Agrostis curtisii). In Purbeck the rare Dorset Heath (E. ciliaris)
is abundant. Further west, in Devon and Cornwall and on the Welsh
coast, western gorse (Ulex gallii) takes over, with bell heather, as long
as it well out of the salt-spray zone of the coast, in which heather
and bell heather form an open, grassy heath rich in coastal species
such as spring squill (Scilla verna). The Lizard Peninsula has its
special Cornish Heath (E. vagans; Fig. 1), and in a few places the
robust, golden-tipped hybrid E. x williamsii. Altogether, in these main
locations, the National Trust has 3,600 hectares of lowland heath,
about 7% of the total for England and Wales.

Upland heaths are more extensive, with about 400,000 hectares
in those two countries (and much more in Scotland), of which the

6

Trust owns valuable tracts in the Rhinogs, Snowdonia, the Lake
District and the Pennines. Here in dry heaths, wet heaths and
blanket mires on deep peat, Calluna grows with bell heather, or
cross-leaved heath, and the other dwarf shrubs mentioned earlier,
often with rich assemblages of bryophytes (mosses and liverworts)
and lichens under the heather canopy.

Heaths are important, not just for some 14 species of heathers
and related dwarf shrubs, but also for an associated flora and fauna
which includes many specialist species. Although not noted for
outstanding floristic richness, some 200 vascular plant species are
found in the drier heaths alone, including rare and scarce species
such as pale dog-violet (Viola lactea), wild chives (Allium
schoenoprasum), hairy greenweed (Genista pilosa) and bearberry
(Arctostaphylos uva-ursi), aS well as Dorset heath and Cornish heath
which are both in the British Red Data Book of rare and threatened
species. The lichen and bryophyte flora is very rich. There are many
special heathland invertebrates — ants, bees, wasps, beetles, spiders
and dragonflies - and heathland birds, such as Dartford warbler,
hobby, woodlark and nightjar in the lowlands, chough on the coast
and red grouse, golden plover, merlin and hen harrier in the
uplands. Lowland heaths are a main habitat for British reptiles and
the only one for the two rarest, sand lizard and smooth snake.

The main conservation issues for National Trust heathlands are
quite different in the lowlands and in the uplands. In the lowlands
the main concern is abandonment. Heaths were used for rough
grazing, turf stripping, fuel cutting and sand winning, all of which
maintained the impoverished soil and bare ground necessary for the
vigorous growth of heathers and other heathland species.
Abandonment has resulted in invasion by common gorse, bracken,
brambles, rank grasses and, away from the coast, birch, oak and
pine. In the last decade the National Trust has reintroduced grazing
to about two-thirds of its lowland heaths, using sheep, goats, cattle
and hardy ponies — such as those which still graze the New Forest
and Exmoor — which graze the coarse grasses, browse the shrubs
and trample bracken. Much manual clearing of scrub and trees is
usually necessary first, and controlled heather burning and cutting
also feature in management programmes.

In the uplands there is the opposite problem: too much grazing
by sheep. Calluna can only tolerate removal of 40% of the current
year’s growth; heavier grazing causes suppression and death of

7

heather and the other dwarf shrubs, and the heathland is eventually
replaced by acid grassland of limited wildlife value. Dry heath is
maintained by a maximum of 1.5 ewes per hectare, so whenever
possible the Trust, often supported by government grants, is
reducing the numbers of stock grazing on heathland on its upland
farms. About two-thirds of these now have appropriate stocking.

Both lowland and upland heaths, and their heathers, have
declined in extent markedly in the last 40 years, but following many
campaigns in the 1980s they are now being vigorously protected by
many government and non-government organisations. Luckily many
heathland plants have long-lived seed-banks in the soil —- Calluna
seeds are reported to be able to last at least 160 years, for example,
so heathlands are relatively easy to restore. The National Trust
places a high priority on wild heather, and its associated species,
and is managing and restoring heathland on some 120 sites in the
lowlands alone. By the end of this millennium, it is hoped that the
Trust will be protecting even more extensive tracts of this nationally
and internationally important habitat.

O Katherine Hearn is Nature Conservation Adviser to The National Trust.

8

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 8-12.

HISTORICAL & BOTANICAL NOTES

THE MAGINESS HEATHERS

A few years before the Heather Society was formed, I used to walk
the moors to see if any new heathers could be found. As Maxwell and
Beale’s Nursery was a short distance from us my findings were taken
there, hopefully to verify this fact. Alas, no luck. Eventually a good
pink Erica cinerea did materialise, so cuttings were taken and plants
grown on. A Heather Society member came to see our garden, took
cuttings of thise heather and later we discovered that he referred to
it as ’Maginess Pink’ (Yb. Heather Soc. 1976: 55; — 1983: 48; —
1984: 68). As no registration had been taken on, I duly registered it.

A few years after that Major-General Pat Turpin, our excellent
chairman at that time, and his wife were here. I had just found a
sport on a bell heather in the garden, showed it to them and — Hey
Presto! — this was registered as E. cinerea "Daphne Maginess’ (Yb.
Heather Soc. 1983: 48; — 1984: 68).

Our daughter, although married, had a heather named after her,
Erica cinerea ’Patricia Maginess’ (Yb. Heather Soc. 1992: 68) so as to
keep the family name intact. This heather was found in the garden,
but the exact origin is uncertain; it has a very pale, almost white bell
with pink stripes. Our son-in-law wants me to find another and
name it after him!

Through the years we were twice privileged to have pictures of
our heather bank printed in Maxwell and Beale’s catalogues. Before
The Heather Society was formed the caption, on the front cover of the
1963-64 catalogue, read ‘A customers heather garden in
Broadstone’; the garden was photographed by Mr Stevens (Fig. 1). In
a later catalogue, another photograph was titled ’A Heather Society
member's garden’.

Daphne Maginess
19 High Park Road, Broadstone, Dorset

A customer’s Heather Garden in Broadstone

Season 1963-64

MAXWELL & BEALE LIMITED

BROADSTONE
DORSET

10
IRISH NURSERY CATALOGUES AND HEATHERS

The National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, has a major collection of
nurserymen’s catalogues from Ireland, Britain and farther afield,
dating from the early nineteenth century to the present day.
Approximately one third of catalogues from the 130 Irish nurseries
represented mention or include heathers, and of these, Doran’s of
Donadea and McCoy’s of Kilmeague, both in County Kildare, are
devoted exclusively to heathers. The remaining nurseries, while not
listing heathers, do throw in the occasional comments about these
plants, for instance, that heather grows well in smoky districts or
that when building miniature peat mountains, an idea promoted by
Murray Hornibrook' (Lissadell catalogue 1915), peat blocks from ’the
top spit of bog’ should be placed "heather side facing the weather’.

Of the 40 or 50 nursery catalogues that do include heathers, four
contain more than 30 varieties, 13 contain between ten and 30
varieties and the remainder fewer than ten. The earliest catalogue is
of John Hervey of Comber, County Down, undated but probably
printed during the 1810s or 1820s. He listed 17 varieties,
unfortunately not priced, but *he doubts not but his prices will be
found at all times as low as those of any House in the Kingdom for
the same quality of goods’. The poor man died in 1829 of
hydrophobia and the Gardener’s Magazine for that year devotes two
pages to his obituary, almost entirely taken up with a lurid account
of his horrific death. When his pleadings to those about him to put
an end to his pain were ineffectual, he cried out "If ever the soul be
allowed to haunt those who have done them wrong, I will return and
torment you all".

In a catalogue of the Slieve Donard Nursery for Autumn
1949/Spring 1950 an entry appears for Daboecia cantabrica
’Praegerae’, ’a new form discovered by Dr. Lloyd Praeger to whom we
are indebted for permission to offer the plant’. However, Dr Charles
Nelson in An Irish florilegium (1983) states ‘Although it has been
reported on a few occasions since 1940, the red-flowered Daboecia
was first found about 1936 by Mrs Praeger, wife of Dr Robert Lloyd

1 Father of Diana Hornibrook, for whom a cultivar of Erica vagans was named. See
Lamb, J. G. D. 1994. Murray Hornibrook a mystery resolved. The new plantsman 1
(2): 76-77.

11

Praeger, near Errisbeg Mountain at Roundstone in Connemara. The
plant was propagated and introduced into commerce by Ballawley
Nursery, Dublin.’

While nurserymen may not be as eloquent in their praise of
heather as they might be of certain other plants, nonetheless they do
occasionally express a warm appreciation of it, for instance,
McGredys of Portadown in their Autumn 1954/Spring 1955
catalogue remark that ’there are few other plants which give so much
pleasure as the heathers ... and with thoughtful selection they can
be an unending source of joy.’ Canon R. C. Patten of Fethard, County
Tipperary recommends in his 1935 catalogue that Erica carnea and
E. mediterranea (= E. erigena) ’should be in every rock garden’ and
Shanahans of Clonakilty, County Cork in their 1967 catalogue
proudly proclaim ’As will be seen we have the largest variety of
heathers in Ireland and customers are advised to visit the nursery
and make a personal choice as it is only by seeing the different sorts
that their full beauty can be realized". These were sold in "4 inch
whalehide pots", a feature that, if correctly described, would not be
popular in our ecologically conscious world of today!

Ruth Brennan
National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin 9

ERICA —- UPDATE ON SPECIES NUMBERS

With the change during recent years in taxonomic status of most of
the capsule-bearing genera of heaths and heathers, I felt that it
would be useful to members to have some easily accessible reference
to the size of the genus Erica and its total distribution (see p. 12).

The megagenus Erica now includes the three African genera
Philippia, Blaeria and Ericinella, and contains approximately 735
species (see OLIVER, E. G. H. 1988. Studies in the Ericoideae
(Ericaceae). VI. The generic relationship between Erica and Philippia
in southern Africa. Bothalia 18: 1-10. OLIVER, E. G. H. 1989. The
Ericoideae and the southern African heathers. Botanical journal of
the Linnean Society 101: 319-327).

12

Our poor taxonomic knowledge of the East African species makes
possible only an estimate of the number of species in that region.

The status of the European monotypic genus Bruckenthalia
remains unresolved, as is the status of 18 other ericoid genera
(containing 95 species) in South Africa. The latter genera are closely
related to Erica and may eventually be included within it, but they
have indehiscent fruits.

E. G. H. OLIVER

Honorary Member, The Heather Society

Stellenbosch Herbarium, P. O. Box 471, Stellenbosch 7599
South Africa.

13

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 13-16.

Heathers in the garden.

GRAHAM STUART THOMAS OBE, VMH.
Briar Cottage, Kettlewell Close, Horsell, Woking GU21 4HY, Surrey.

It may well be asked where else would a gardener, a member of the
Heather Society, put them? But the question remains because this
little essay does not include window boxes and other containers,
formal raised beds and borders and the like. As long ago as the
1950s, the celebrated and highly successful gardener A. T. Johnson
wrote the following about heathers from his garden in North Wales:

It is their care-free natures, their willingness and ability to carry on indefinitely
without demanding a moment of our time in cultural aid, which are among their
most gratifying attributes.

Johnson was the arch-priest of the cult of ground-cover from close-
growing plants in an endeavour to prevent the growth of weeds. In
this, and particularly in the use of heaths and heathers, he was most
successful and I learnt much from him about this as well as the use
of other plants for the same purpose.

With another quotation from the same book, The hardy heaths
(Blandford Press, London. 1956, revised edition.), Iam not so happy:
‘In the mixed border, few objects are more attractive and few so
telling in effect as a well-grown bush of some choice heath.’ One
should bear in mind that the mixed border to him did not include the
usual perennial plants and modern roses but shrubs and bulbs and
woodland plants. Even so, to my mind heathers do not necessarily
blend into what we call mixed borders today, nor do they thrive in all
mixtures of plants. What is more foreign to a well ordered garden
than to find a collection of, say, a dozen assorted heaths and
heathers placed in a clump and surrounded by conventional border
plants, shrubs, perennials and bulbs? Perhaps they would have been
purchased on impulse from the neighbouring plant-centre and
placed without thought except that there was a space to be filled.
But that is one of the evils of plant centres. It is always safer to go to
a centre with the express desire to get a plant or plants which will fill

F ig. ie Newly planted Erica carnea cultivars and other dwa
Cottage, Horsell [G. S. Thomas].

the needs and aesthetics of a special site, rather than to come home
wondering where to put the latest purchase.

Heathers, to me, spell the wide open air, the moorland and
hillsides and appear out of place when popped in our mixed borders.
I am well aware that our gardens today manifestly lack the space for
extensive planting of these little shrubs but by careful thought about
neighbouring planting we can make them appear to be not only at
home, but fostering the feeling of moorland. Their neighbours should
be small shrubs with small leaves such as species roses, not modern
roses and hearty perennials or overweening large shrubs. This
remark has overtones in the fact that the spreading growth of shrubs
is inimical to the heath’s growth and may cause them to die back.
Moreover, the fall of the leaves in autumn will cause the same
trouble with consequent eventual death. Above all other plants they
need an expanse of open air and wind, to keep them compact.

Their compactness is fostered by an annual clipping after
flowering is over. It keeps them solid and prevents the dead leaves of
autumn and winter from settling in their clumps, which causes
rotting of their own leaves and indeed their twigs. The clipping does
however need a little qualification: the winter-flowering heaths (Erica

15

camea, E. x darleyensis) benefit greatly from it; so do the summer-
flowering species, but the autumn-flowering heathers (Calluna)
should have a proviso written in about the winter colour of the dead
flower-spikes. It is true they make a wintry blend but after Christmas
are not happy in my opinion with the warm pink of the winter-
flowering heaths, hence the need for late clipping.

In fact the whole matter of colour needs much thought. If we
have the space to indulge our fancies, we shall plant in patches
(more attractively called "drifts") of some size, each drift echoing the
others in as natural a way as possible, not in rounded clumps. Thus
we achieve a blend of shapes rather than a patchwork quilt effect
which might well accrue even though far from the original intention.
It is well to bear in mind the Hidcote rule, to put in an extra plant or
two adjacent to the main drift to appear as if self-sown.

To prolong the interest in our imaginary moorland, we shall be
tempted to include some of the clones of Calluna whose foliage is of
bright orange-red and orange-brown, yellow or allied tints. These are
not only unnatural but are fiercely antagonistic to the general tones
of pink and mauve, crimson and purple of the flowers of the little
bushes. The result will be a hotch-potch of colours far removed from
a wild heathland. Therefore blend your pink-flowered cultivars with
grey-foliaged clones of Erica tetralix ‘Alba Mollis’, Calluna vulgaris
Tomentosa’ and Hebe pinguifolia ’Pagei’ and keep your orange- and
reddish-leaved cultivars in a separate position where they can blend
with the sere flowers of the old year. I have found the shrubby
veronica (Hebe) perfect for threading through the pink winter-
flowering Erica carnea and E. x darleyensis varieties where in winter
the cupped leaves glisten with dew or rain.

It is, I think, hardly necessary for me to dilate on the subject of
soil; all members of this society will be familiar with the fact that the
soil must be as near to lime-free as possible for all but a few species.
We can add to this that soils overlying magnesian limestone in parts
of the Lake District and northeastern Yorkshire are not usually the
cause of disaster with heathers. I am writing from Surrey where we
have experienced three very dry years (summer and winter) in a row
and I have noted on a hot dry bank, planted by the local Council,
how all the cultivars have died except E. x darleyensis ‘Darley Dale’,
‘Arthur Johnson’ and E. erigena W. T. Rackliff. With them, serene
and bushy is E. terminalis. This is a helpful pointer to selection. With
them, fostering the same heathland effect go the various brooms,

16

species of Genista and Cytisus, which will likewise put up with
drought. I should not want their strong yellows with cultivars of Erica
cinerea and E. vagans and the earlier Calluna sorts, but their yellows
will not upset Erica carnea. In some seasons the primrose-yellow
Cytisus x kewensis will overlap with charming colour effect with later
E. carnea clones such as the deep-toned Vivellii’ and the noted new
E. erigena ‘Irish Dusk’ which is of a unique tint among heathers, a
soft coppery pink; but it is tall growing.

Once again, as with all colour scheming in gardens, it is white
that holds the trumps. We are blessed with the invaluable Erica
carnea ’Springwood White’ (Fig. 1), an exceptionally good, rampant
grower, whose foliage is a comparatively bright green and the later
flowering more stocky E. x darleyensis White Perfection’. There is
also ’Silberschmelze’ but this I find is not a clear white like
Springwood White’ and it does not do to associate one with the
other. The same choice can be made, throughout the season, with
cultivars of E. cinerea, E. vagans and Calluna.

Of course, our planting of drifts of distinctly coloured clones will
not even approach a moorland effect. Nor will single plants of distinct
cultivars planted in mixture. If you really hanker after natural
moorland, either go to it or raise your plants from seeds. It will take
two or three years of attention prior to planting and the true
gardeners among us would probably complain about the lack of
variety. Perhaps we must make full use of our imagination and have
in our mind’s eye what should really be there. A lot can be done,
though, with associate planting. Besides the Hebe mentioned above
you can interplant - notably around the perimeter of the heather
drifts — plants which normally grow with them, such as carpeting
junipers and Arctostaphylos species, Betula nana, dwarf lavenders
and Cistus, and Salvia lavandulifolia — all small-leafed dwarf shrubs
which will create a maquis effect rather than an English moorland.
The extreme in the other direction would be to take a leaf out of the
garden designers’ notebook and make a striking contrast with Yucca,
Phormium (New Zealand flax), Bergenia and other plants noted for
their foliage effect. Of a truth there is no finality or rule in any
department of gardening when once you grasp all its vast potentials.
There is room for all tastes.

O Graham Thomas is Gardens Consultant to The National Trust, an author of
international renown, and an authority on roses.

17

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 17-22.

Cape heaths in eastern Ireland.

DAVID ROBINSON
Earlscliffe, Ceanchor Road, Baily, County Dublin, Ireland.

Erica species from South Africa, or Cape heaths as they are often
called, were fashionable plants in northern Europe during the first
few decades of the nineteenth century. At that period plant-hunters
were combing southern Africa, especially the Cape of Good Hope, for
beautiful plants and were sending back scores of previously
unknown Erica species to the Royal Gardens at Kew and to
nurserymen and gardeners elsewhere in Europe. These new plants
created enomnous interest among horticulturists and the general
public as they were amongst the most attractive plant introductions
at that time. The colour of the flowers ranged from deep red to white
and yellow.

Over 180 species of southern African heaths were growing at the
Royal Gardens, Kew, in 1811 and 250 species were cultivated at the
Dublin Society’s Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, in 1818.

In the last 150 years interest in the Cape healths has declined
everywhere. The climate in Ireland, Britain and most of northern
Europe is too cold for their culture outdoors and these plants need
to be grown under glass. As costs of heating and labour increased
during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, more and more Erica
enthusiasts turned their attention to more easily grown plants that
were appearing on the horticultural scene. Many of the Cape species
that were once so popular have been lost to cultivation.

Brian Morley, writing about southern hemisphere plants in Irish
gardening and horticulture (Royal Horticultural Society of Ireland,
Dublin. 1979) stated that

a few South African Erica can still be seen in milder Irish gardens, such as E.
taxifolia and E. pageana at Rossdohan [near Sneem, County Kerry], but the hardy
European species of Erica and Calluna now attract the attention of the Irish
gardener.

co cs oa ‘

ice

sa

fh C44,
Fig. 1. Erica glandulosa at

Admittedly European heathers are easier to grow in Britain and
Ireland and are among the most valuable woody plants for garden
decoration. But they lack some of the special features that make the
Cape heaths such supremely beautiful plants. Many of the South
African Erica species have large tubular flowers in bright, vivid
colours and the plants are often much taller and larger than their
European counterparts.

Circumstances have changed since the short-lived Cape heath
craze in the early nineteenth century and another look at these
remarkable plants for outdoor use in Ireland and the milder parts of
Britain could well be rewarding. As with many other plant
introductions in the last century, much emphasis was placed on
testing the plants under glass. It is unlikely that any serious effort
was made to investigate systematically the suitability of Cape heaths
for outdoor use in mild areas of these islands. Where a plant can
survive outdoors it generally thrives better there than under glass.
The plant will have a larger, unrestricted root-run and will not be
affected by the very high temperatures, low humidity and poor
ventilation that can occur in a greenhouse. In addition, the Cape

19

Erica species are mostly plants of mountains, growing on acid,
nutrient-poor soil and used to almost constant air movement.
Undoubtedly many Cape heaths in cultivation were killed by lack of
ventilation and air movement in glasshouses and by over-dosing with
fertilisers.

In 1986, I decided to add to the number of South African Erica
species growing in the open in my garden at Earlscliffe, Baily, County
Dublin. E. glandulosa (Fig. 1) had been planted in 1974 and had
survived all winters since then. E. canaliculata, E. pageana, E.
cruenta and E. mollis were added in 1986; the hybrid E. x hiemalis
was also tried.

Earlscliffe is a coastal garden situated on the southern side of the
Howth peninsula just north of Dublin (53° 4’ N latitude and 6° W
longitude). The soil, derived from Cambrian shale and quartzite, is
a clay to silty clay-loam, well drained with approximately 12% coarse
sand, 13% fine sand, 47% silt and 28% clay in the 0-100 mm layer.
The soil is shallow, much of the area having only about 20 cm of top
soil. The natural pH is between 5.0 and 5.5 and the organic matter
content around 4.5% in the top 7.5 cm.

Most of the 2.75 ha garden has a gentle slope to the south but
close to the southern boundary it falls steeply to the edge of the Irish
Sea. Cliffs, 80 metres high, along the southern boundary help to
deflect the worst of the southerly gales over the garden. The site is
well protected on the north and east by the Hill of Howth, which
reaches a maximum height of 180 m. Shelter on the west is provided
by a belt of tall trees, mainly lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta),
Monterey cypress (Cupressus macrocarpa) and sycamore (Acer
pseudoplatanus).

The garden has been maintained largely by means of a herbicide
regime since 1969. Simazine at 1.7 kg a.i./ha is applied twice a year
as an overall application in April and July. Any surviving weeds are
treated with spot applications with appropriate leaf-acting herbicides,
usually glyphosate or paraquat, as necessary throughout the year.
Occasionally weeds are pulled out by hand but no hoeing or
cultivation is given. An attempt is made to kill all weeds before they
shed seeds. This goal is largely but not completely achieved. No
evidence of a build-up of resistant weed biotypes or herbicide
residues has occurred after 25 years.

All the African Erica that I planted in 1986 have survived except
E. x hiemalis which never established well and died in the winter

after planting. The experience gained in the last eight years suggests
that many more South African Erica species than those listed by
Morley will survive outdoors in mild coastal areas. Because of the
generally milder climate that their gardens enjoy, gardeners in
Ireland are better placed than those in most of Britain to exploit
Cape heaths both for garden decoration and as a potential
commercial crop.

Outdoors, large plants make an extensive root run but the bulk
of the root system is close to the soil surface. All heathers dislike root
disturbance and resent cultivation around their roots. The present
availability of soil-acting herbicides is another factor that has
changed since the days of Cape heath mania. The careful. use of
herbicides is a valuable aid to weed control and is likely to be a
contributory factor, along with the mild climate and acid soil, which
enables a number of tender Erica species to flourish in my garden in
north County Dublin without special attention.

Probably the most noteworthy is Erica canaliculata (Fig. 2),
formerly grown as E. melanthera. This reached a height of 2.5 m in
five years, despite periodic cutting back, and promises to grow much

taller. In Ireland, flower buds are
clearly visible on the plant from
November onwards and the flowers
are open between March and May.
The flowers are small but are borne
in enormous numbers and are an
attractive violet-pink with
conspicuous, contrasting black
anthers. The flowers are carried on
spectacular spikes that may be 60
to 80 cm long, and they last well
after cutting.

With the increasing demand for
flowers for interior decoration E.
canaliculata appears to have
potential as a commercial cut-flower
crop for British and European
markets. Such an enterprise would @& :
need to be located in specially Fig. 3. Erica cruenta at Earlscliffe,
selected coastal areas. However, Howth [E. C. Nelson.
this species is one of the easiest to
root from cuttings, which can be taken over a long period, and the
young plants grow vigorously.

Although Erica glandulosa never experiences frost where it grows
wild in the Western Cape, it has not been damaged by temperatures
down to -5°C in north County Dublin. This heath is easily identified
as the leaves are covered with glandular hairs so that the young
leaves at the shoot tip will stick together in a characteristic way
when the shoot is lightly squeezed between finger and thumb. The
flowers are long and tubular, about 2.5 cm long and are a pleasing
blend of pink, orange and white.

Many Cape heaths, such as Erica mollis, are attractive because
of the overall effect of masses of smallish flowers carried in large
numbers on short lateral branches, but the large, shiny, blood-red
flowers of E. cruenta (cruentus = blood-stained) (Fig. 3) are
sufficiently striking to be admired for their individual beauty. This
species is not a vigorous grower but can reach a height of about 1 m.
As it occurs mainly at low altitudes in South Africa, its survival in
the wild is threatened by agricultural development.

Fig. 4. Erica pageana brightening a dark corner, Earlscliffe, Howth [D. Robinson].

Erica pageana (cover & Fig. 4) is one of the few yellow-flowered
heathers in European cultivation. The colour is intensely bright and
the flowers are slightly fragrant, although the scent will not appeal
to everybody. The plant grows to 0.75-1 m high and is not long lived
but like most of the heathers it is easily propagated. This species
would not be suitable for cutting as the shock of sudden branch
removal would probably be enough to kill the plant. This species
occurs naturally in marshy areas and appears to be sensitive to
summer drought in Ireland. Nevertheless, this remarkable plant is
worth growing for garden decoration in mild areas.

Cape heaths may suffer in extremely severe winters such as
those that occurred in 1946-1947, 1961-1962 and 1978-1979. But
severe winters are widely spaced and there are some indications that
winters are tending to become milder.

Many species would make ideal conservatory plants now that
their need for good air movement and ventilation is better
understood. How many of the 700-odd species of South African
heathers would thrive outside in favourable areas in these islands is
unknown. What is certain is that several of these supremely
beautiful plants will grow well in mild coastal areas and deserve to
be better known and more widely tested than they are at present.

O Dr David Robinson retired several years ago as Director of the Kinsealy
Resarch Centre, County Dublin; he is an expert on chemical control of weeds.

23

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 23-26.

Propagation of hardy heathers in the garden.

DAVID SMALL
Denbeigh, All Saint’s Road, Creeting St Mary, Ipswich IP6 8Pu,
Suffolk.

A compost into which rooting can take place can be prepared from
three parts sphagnum moss peat (do not use sedge peat as this can
often have a high pH) and one part of horticultural perlite. An acid,
gritty sand can be used instead of perlite where available, but it
must be acid. This applies even for the propagation of heathers
which would normally grow in any soil, as an acid medium will
improve the rooting yield. There is no need to add fertiliser at this
stage, in fact, the yield is likely to be higher if none is added.

If horticultural perlite is being used add water to the perlite as
instructed by the manufacturer, otherwise for easy mixing and
subsequent handling, there is no need to add extra water at this
stage.

Many gardeners have trouble rooting heathers from cuttings but
if a number of simple rules are followed, a high success rate can be
achieved.

1. Cuttings should be taken from healthy vigorous plants
preferably not more than three years old.

Calluna vulgaris

Cuttings can be taken in April using the leafy growth appearing
above last year’s flowers. In this case select stems where the leafy
growth is at least 1 cm long. Cut the stem with a sharp knife 2 cm
below the leafy growth. Remove any dead flowers by rubbing your
finger and thumb down the stem.

Cuttings can also be taken during July and August from the
growth just below the flowering stem. Select stems which are firm
and just turning straw brown. Discard stems where the leaf nodes
are more than 2 mm apart as these will be more difficult to root and
make a less shapely plant. Cut the stem with a sharp knife

24

Preparation of
April
Calluna vulgaris
cuttings

Preparation of
July
Calluna vulgaris

cuttings

Preparation of
Erica cinerea
cuttings

Preparation of
Erica carnea
cuttings

Fig. 1 Propagating heathers; drawings by Brita Johansson.

25

immediately below the flowers and then cut again to create a cutting
4-5 cm long. Remove the leaves from the lower 2 cm of the cutting
by rubbing your finger and thumb down the stem.

Daboecia cantabrica & D. x scotica

Cuttings are best taken in July. Select side shoots which are firm
and just turning to straw brown about 4-5 cm long. Pull down
carefully to ‘tear’ the cutting from the main stem so as to leave a
small ’heel’ at the base of the cutting. Remove the leaves from the
lower half of the cutting by pulling downwards. Sometimes this type
of cutting is not readily available in which case, prepare in a similar
way to a July Calluna cutting.

Erica carnea

Cuttings are best taken in July or August by selecting stems
which do not have buds forming on them. Ideally heel cuttings about
4-5 cm long are best but if in short supply a tip cutting can be
prepared by cutting off the top 5 cm of growth with a sharp knife.
Avoid stems where the leaf nodes are more than 2 mm apart. The
lower half of the leaves should be removed by rubbing a finger and
thumb downwards along the stem. In the case of the tip cutting, nip
out the growing tip. As E. carnea flowers profusely, it may be difficult
to find cutting material without buds, in which case these will have
to be used. Prepare as above but remove all flower buds by rubbing
a finger and thumb upwards along the stem.

Erica ciliaris, E. mackaiana, E. tetralix & E. x stuartii

Cuttings are best taken during July and August using non-
flowering heel cuttings about 1-2 cm long, which are usually
plentiful. Remove the leaves from the lower half of the cutting as
described above.

Erica cinerea

Cuttings are best taken during July and August, using non-
flowering heel cuttings. If available, these are likely to be quite small,
1-2 cm long. Remove the leaves from the lower half of the cutting by
rubbing finger and thumb down the stem. Often heel cuttings of this
type are difficult to find, in which case the stems below flowering
shoots can be used, provided the spacing between the ‘tufts’ of leaves
does not exceed 2 mm. Cut these from the plant in a similar way to

26

that described for July Calluna cuttings, but making sure the lower
cut is made immediately below a ‘tuft’ of leaves. Remove the lower
half of the leaves.

Erica x darleyensis & E. erigena

Cuttings are best taken in August, making particularly sure in
the case of E. erigena that the stem is semi-ripe, when they are firm
and turning to straw-brown. Take and prepare heel cuttings 3-5 cm
long as described for E. ciliaris.

2. Place some of the compost into a seed tray, very lightly firm and
then dib holes with a nail about 2 cm apart.

3. Place the cuttings in the prepared holes but do not firm them
in.

4. Once the seed tray has been filled, water heavily so that
compost seals the holes.

5. Leave for 20 minutes and seal the seed tray in a polythene bag
(one with no holes in it), ensuring the polythene is kept clear of
the cuttings.

6. Place the seed tray against a north wall or in light shade under
a bush or a place where the sun cannot play on the polythene
bag. Never place the tray in a greenhouse as the temperature
variation is too great, nor in a propagator unless you are
prepared to spray the cuttings five or six times a day.

7. Leave for several months, checking occasionally that the
polythene bag is fogged. If not, simply heavily water again,
leave 20 minutes and re-seal. Any cuttings that die should be
removed to minimise disease. To check that rooting is taking
place lightly pull the cutting. If resistance is felt, you can be
sure that rooting is taking place. Those not rooting will come
out easily and can be replaced as easily.

© David Small is Chairman of The Heather Society.

27

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 27-32.

Introduction of St Dabeoc’s heath into
English gardens, 1763.

JEAN O’NEILL’ & E. CHARLES NELSON?
' Lisle Court Cottage, Lymington SO41 5SH, Hampshire
* National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, Ireland

The names of St Dabeoc’s heath, Daboecia cantabrica (sometimes
known as the Connemara heath), derive from an Irish saint, Dabeoc,
the son of an early convert of St Patrick, who founded a monastery
on an island in Lough Derg, County Donegal, where, according to
tradition, he died and was buried about 516 AD.

Although the Irish had associated this Connemara heather with
St Dabeoc for countless years, it was not until 1700 that the
naturalist and Keeper of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, Edward
Llwyd (olim Lhuyd) (1660-1709), found the plant in the west of
Ireland. From Llwyd’s gatherings of the heath, the Revd John Ray
described it in 1704 as Erica S. Dabeoci Hibernica.” Llwyd gave a
specimen to Adam Buddle (1660-1715),? who bequeathed his
herbarium to Sir Hans Sloane (1660-1753), and in this way that
specimen was included in Sloane’s herbarium (in turn, this formed
part of the nucleus of The British Museum (and latterly The Natural
History Museum), London).*

In the meantime, on 25 August 1700, Llwyd wrote’ from
Penzance, Cornwall, to the King’s Physician, Tancred Robinson FRS
(d. 1748), who was a friend also of Sloane and Ray: this letter was
later published in the Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society
of London.

In most of the Mountains of Galloway and Mayo grows an elegant sort of Heath,
bearing large Thyme-leaves, a Spike of fair purple Flowers like some Campanula,
and viscous stalks.

He also wrote® to Dr Richard Richardson, a physician of North
Bierley in Yorkshire, that the heath was

28

so common that the people have given it the name of Frych Dabeog ... and
sometimes the women carry sprigs of it about them as a preservative against
incontinency [i.e. unchastity].

Apart from Ireland, St Dabeoc’s heath grows naturally in south-
western France, northern Spain and Portugal.

Heathers in 18th century English gardens
In the eighteenth century, although heathers grew in abundance on
the moors, commons, wastelands and heaths throughout these
islands, they were not popular garden plants. In various editions of
his Gardener’s dictionary, Philip Miller wrote of heathers: ’these are
seldom propagated in gardens and so not to be had from the
nurseries’. Ignoring St Dabeoc’s heath, Miller confined himself to five
species; Erica vulgaris (Calluna vulgaris) or ling, Erica carnea (E.
herbacea), E. cinerea or bell heather, E. tetralix or cross-leaved heath,
and E. arborea or tree heath which had been introduced into Britain
in 1658. Unconcerned by conservation, Miller advised his readers to
dig them up ‘with a ball of earth to their roots, from the natural
places of their growth’, and to plant them in their gardens.

Notwithstanding the lack of interest in heaths, the Duchess of
Beaufort (d. 1713) had received seeds of Erica from the Cape of Good
Hope in 1694,’ and a hundred years later Peter Collinson (Fig. 1), a
Quaker merchant and one of the greatest plantsman of his day, grew
hardy and Cape heaths in his garden at Mill Hill, near Hendon in
Middlesex.®

In a handwritten catalogue of his garden plants, Horto
Collinsoniano, Collinson listed ’Erica in varietas’, though his first
reference to Daboecia cantabrica is a note found in one of his copies
of Miller’s Gardener’s dictionary:?

Erica cantabrica raised from seed sent me fr Spain anno 1763 p. Mr Bowles.

It seems out of character for Collinson to have overlooked St
Dabeoc’s heath for so long, for hardly any plant escaped his eagle-
eye. Moreover he was a close friend of Hans Sloane, whose
herbarium collections he knew well. Collinson was also in touch with
Richard Richardson and, as a young man, he knew Edward Llwyd;
for these reasons it would be odd if he had never heard of this
Connemara heather. However by 1763 Collinson was in

29

Fig. Y Peter Collinson FRS (1694-1768).

correspondence with Dr William Bowles (1705-1780), an Irish
geologist and natural historian who was born and bred in County
Cork.’° Having studied medicine, Bowles became Superintendent of
the State Mines in Spain and while he was living in Madrid, the Earl
of Rochfort was appointed as Britain’s ambassador to Spain.

On 17 December 1764, Bowles wrote to Collinson from Madrid:"’

You desire to know ... whether your letter to Lord Rochfort met with a cordial
reception. I can assure you it did. His Lordship sent for me the day he received
it. He read it to me and after his goodnatured gay manner, said, honest Peter and
I eat Ham and Chickens together, how do you direct to him Bowles? | said in
Gracechurch Street. He took it down and I dare say you have received an answer.
this day he read your last letter to me. He heartily laughed at your talking of His
Vegetable Sports on the banks of the Po. Good part of the conversation at dinner

rowled [sic] upon Mr Peter Collinson ... I cannot believe that the Erica, of which

30

I sent a small specimen, grows in England; I am sure it is not in France. It looks
at a distance like a small Fir tree.

As Collinson found that ‘dusty seeds’, as he called them,’* were
difficult to raise, he probably gave Bowles’s seeds of St Dabeoc’s
heath and the one like ’a small Fir tree’ (Surely Erica arborea) to the
nurseryman, James Gordon (d. 1780).

Late in 1765, Collinson made this note about St Dabeoc’s
heath:'’*

From seed sent me from Spain was rais’d the Erica cantabrica Myrtifolia &c this
elegant plant flowr’d in August 1765 in my Garden at Mill Hill Essex in Hendon
Parish Middlesex ...

On the strength of this, on 17 September 1765, he sent a specimen
of the blooming heather to Carl Linnaeus, the great Swedish
botanist. In his letter to Linnaeus Collinson added a postscript,
saying that he was enclosing specimens

of Erica cantabrica &c now in flower in my garden, which was raised from seed,
sent me last year from Spain. It is an elegant plant and makes a pretty show.

Linnaeus, in turn, commented to another naturalist, John Ellis FRS
(c. 1776)'° -

Erica Dabeociwas sent by Peter Collinson: a fine specimen which much delighted
me. It is truly an Erica, though so unlike the rest.

Like Collinson, Bowles did not divulge whether he knew that St
Dabeoc’s heath grew naturally in Ireland. Nevertheless the facts
remain that Llwyd found the heather in western Ireland in 1700;
there were specimens, gathered by Llwyd, in several herbaria in
London; it was described by Ray in 1704 and illustrated that same
year by James Petiver. Regardless of this evidence,'® some reference
books still attribute the first date of cultivation in England of
Daboecia cantabrica to about the year 1800.'”

The irony is that whether or not Collinson and Bowles knew that
St Dabeoc’s heath was a native of Ireland, the first plants of Daboecia
cantabrica known to have been cultivated in the eighteenth century
were of Spanish origin. Thus to William Bowles as collector and Peter

31

Collinson as gardener goes the credit for introducing this beautiful
heather into English gardens.

NOTES'®

1. NELSON, E. C. 1984. Dabeoc - a saint and his heather. Yearbook of the Heather
Society 3 (2): 41-46.

2. RAY, J. 1704. Historia plantarum ... tom. 3. p. 98. Samuel Smith & Benjamin
Walford, London.

3. Revd Adam Buddle (after whom Buddleja, the butterfly bush was named), was
rector of North Fambridge, Essex (see DESMOND, R. G. C. 1993. Dictionary of
British and Irish botanists and horticulturists. Revised edition. Taylor & Francis,
& The Natural History Museum, London).

4. On Sloane’s death and according to his wishes, the government purchased his
collections, at half the price that Sloane had paid for them. Thus, the collections
of Sir Hans Sloane form part of the collection in the British Museum and the
Natural History Museum, London.

5. E. Llwyd to T. Robinson 25 August 1700: see Philosophical transactions 27: 524-
526 (1712). (DANDY, J. E. 1958. The Sloane herbarium. p. 158. British Museum
(Natural History), London.)

6. E. Llwyd to R. Richardson, October 1700 (Sloane Ms 4063 f. 48); see Dandy (1958),
p. 156.

7. Sloane Ms 3343, f. 279 (British Library, London).

8. See marginal note in Collinson’s copy (in National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth)
of MILLER, P. 1752. Gardener's dictionary. (6th edition). 'Horto Collinsoniano’ is —
bound into Collinson’s copy (now in National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth) of
MILLER, P. 1759. Gardener's dictionary. (7th edition). (See O’NEILL, J. 1993.
Peter Collinson’s copies of Philip Miller's Dictionary in the National Library of
Wales. Archives of natural history 20: 373-380). We are grateful to the staff of the
National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, for their assistance and to The Librarian
for permission to examine Collinson’s books.

9. 6th edition (1752) (National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth).

10. COLGAN, N. 1911. An Irish naturalist in Spain in the eighteenth century. The
Irish naturalist 20: 1-5. SCANNELL, M. J. P. 1975. William Bowles and the
introduction of Daboecia cantabrica to cultivation in Britain. The Garden 100:
318-319.

32

ib

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

Dr Guilermo [sic] Bowles to P. Collinson, 17 December 1764 (Library, American
Philosophical Society, Philadelphia; BC 692.1). At the end of this letter, Collinson
added a note which, although indistinct, it reads more or less as follows:
Inform’s his Erica Cantabrica flower’d ... Desire seed of the Firr like heath
mentioned [in] Dilenius and Petivers works Figured after Land & River shells.

Annotation in Collinson’s copy of Miller (1752, 6th edition): see Collinson’s tribute
to James Gordon, dated 2 September 1763. (National Library of Wales,

Aberystwyth).

Marginal annotation in Collinson’s copy of Miller (1759, 7th edition) (National
Library of Wales, Aberystwyth).

Ms in Linnean Society, London (see SMITH, J. E. 1821. A selection of the
correspondence of Linnaeus and other naturalists. Vol. 1, p. 69. London.)

C. Linnaeus to J. Ellis 27 December 1765 (see Smith (1821), Vol. 1, p. 184).

See also McCLINTOCK, D. 1969. Daboecia azorica and its hybrids with D.
cantabrica. Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society 94: 449-453. McCLINTOCK,
D. 1973. The wild heathers of Ireland, in Report of Recorders’ conference Dublin
September 1972. pp 24-35. The Irish Regional Committee, Botanical Society of the
British Isles, [Dublin].

e.g. (COOMBES, A. J.] 1991. The Hillier manual of trees and shrubs. 6th edition.
Hillier Nurseries (Winchester) Ltd., Romsey.

O Lady O'Neill is Peter Collinson’s biographer, and a vice-president of the Garden
History Society.
O Dr E. C. Nelson is Taxonomist, National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin.

33

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 33-40.

Erica mackaiana forma multiplicata: a new
name for the "multipetalled" form of
Mackay’s heath, with a history of Crawford's
heath.

E. CHARLES NELSON

National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, Ireland.

"MULTIPETALLED" MACKAY’S HEATH

The Connemara (County Galway) and Mayo populations of Macken Ss
heath (Erica mackaiana Bab.) contain numerous plants that display
varying degree of malformation of the flowers, including "doubling"
(Nelson 1989: 272) — “doubling” is an inexact and very misleading
term, for in reality the floral parts concerned are sometimes more
numerous than twice the original number, and often they are so
abundant as to be literally almost countless. In the familiar "double"
cultivar of E. mackaiana, originally called Crawford’s heath, some
individual flowers have such an over-stuffed corolla that it bursts to
form a rose-like blossom.

My observations of plants in the Irish populations of E.
mackaiana during the past two decades indicate that Crawford’s
heath is an extreme example of a strange phenomenon in which the
stamens, style and stigmas of E. mackaiana can be malformed. When
the phenomenon occurs, all the flowers produced by an individual
plant are affected and the nature and degree of the malformation is,
in general terms, consistent within that plant. Moreover, judging by
the several "“double-flowered" cultivars, the malformation is
perpetual; the progeny of such plants, when produced by vegetative
propagation, retain the malformed floral parts. Thus _ the
malformation probably has an internal, genetic origin, and is not
caused by ephemeral, external agents such as chemicals or insects.

The most prevalent malformation involves degenerate stamens
which could be called staminodes. In plants displaying the
_ malformation, the anthers are always moribund, distorted and empty
of pollen, or in many cases entirely absent. The filaments of the

34

stamens are also different from those in normal, fertile plants; in
some of the plants with distorted anthers the eight filaments may
merely be broadened, while in others the filaments will be more
- Numerous and petal-like with no trace of anthers. As noted, in the
most extreme examples such as the plants collected by F. C.
Crawford in 1901, or by A. G. More in 1869 (Praeger 1938), there is
an astonishing proliferation of the irregularly shaped, flattened,
petaloid filaments (sometime termed "petals") without anthers. The
broadened filaments may be fused for their entire length into a
cylinder, thereby forming one or more secondary corolla-like
structures inside the true corolla.

Usually, plants displaying these characteristics are not
conspicuous in the field, but when random collections are made and
the individual flowers are examined with a hand-lens, the petaloid,
anther-less filaments can sometimes be seen protruding at the
mouth of the urn-shaped corolla. When flowers are dissected under
a microscope, the broadened, petaloid filaments are immediately
obvious, and in this way these variants are found to be relatively
frequent.

As E. mackaiana plants possessing this range of characters are
not infrequent, I propose that they should be segregated into a
botanical form named E. mackaiana f. multiplicata (see Appendix),
distinguished from the type by the moribund or absent anthers and
the flattened petaloid filaments, whether equal in number to the
stamens of intact, fertile flowers (i.e. 8), or, as in Crawford’s heath,
more numerous. Included within this botanical form are the cultivars
Flore Pleno’ (which is the earliest (1905) available name for
Crawford's heath, but one long since abandoned in favour of the later
Plena’) and ’Maura’, both wild collected, and ’Ann D. Frearson’.

Erica mackaiana f. multiplicata is recorded from Connemara, from
the populations at Craiggamore near Roundstone, and at Carna, and
from the recently discovered population near Bellacorrick in west
County Mayo. The form has not been detected in County Donegal
(Lough Nacung) nor in Spain. This form was among the specimens
collected at Craiggamore by William McCalla when the species was
first brought to attention in the mid-1830s.

Erica Mackayii, Hook., was growing in abundance and in
great beauty, and Mr. Crawford was fortunate enough to find
in some quantity the particularly fine very double variety of
ite

January 1902: Trans. & proc. of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh 22: 163.

Erica Mackayii. Hook., and double variety - Connemara.
ibid.: 164.

Professor Balfour gave an exhibition of forms of Erica Tetralix
from Connemara, namely, true Tetralix, E. Mackayi, and E.
Stuarti, and referred to the new find of E. Crawfordi... .

November 1902: The Irish naturalist 11: 287
repeated word for word elsewhere as follows -—

... an exhibition of forms of Erica Tetralix from Connemara ...
and referred to the new find of E. Crawfordi... .
December 1902: Journal of botany 40: 428-429.

A highly interesting description of Crawford’s Heath (Erica
Tetralix fl.-pl.) was given ... . The existence of this double
variety of E. tetralix is not yet widely known ... .

25 March 1905: The garden 67: x.

The President contributed a note on Erica Tetralix, L., subsp.
Mackayi, Hook., flore pleno, Crawford’s Heath.
April 1905: Trans. & proc. of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh 23: 91.

E. Mackaii ... A double-flowered form found at Craigga More
by Mr. F. C. Crawford of Edinburgh in 1891 [sic], has been
called by nurserymen E. Crawfordii.

1909: R. Ll.Praeger, A tourist’s flora of the west of Ireland 163
repeated elsewhere, almost word for word, as follows -

A double-flowered form, found in Galway by the late F. C.
Crawford, has been named by nurserymen E. Crawfordii, but
the description has not been published, and the name may

be allowed to drop... .
5 November 1910: The gardeners’ chronicle 48: 333.

35

36

"ERICA CRAWFORDI" —- DISCOVERY AND INTRODUCTION

On 5 August 1901, Dr Frank C. Crawford (1851-1908: see e.g.
Marshall 1910), with two fellow members of the Scottish Alpine
Botanical Society, visited Connemara and ‘was fortunate enough to
find in some quantity the particularly fine very double variety’ of E.
mackaiana (Paul 1902). Several authors (e.g. Ball, 1911, 1914;
Scannell & McClintock 1973; McClintock 1973) dated the original
collection as 1891, an error that seems to have arisen from the
coincidence of two separate visits, a decade apart, by the Scottish
Alpine Botanical Society to the same part of Ireland (the earlier visit
resulted in the discovery of E. x stuartii (Macfarl.) Mast. which
Crawford went to re-find (Paul 1902; Nelson 1995)).

Crawford’s heather was remarkable because of the double
flowers, the stamens transformed into countless, sterile, petaloid
filaments which pack tightly into the barrel-shaped corolla (Uphof
1939; Webb 1956). Within days of returning home from Ireland,
Crawford sent specimens of his heather, correctly identified as a form
of E. mackaiana, to the editor of The Garden, and a note appeared on
24 August 1901:

Mr. F. C. Crawford sends from Edinburgh a most interesting and uncommon
example of a double heath occurring in a wild state with these words:
"Herewith I send you a twig of a charming heath which I found in Connemara
the other day. You will note that it is a double-flowered form of Erica Mackayii
[sic]. I do not know if this form has been found before now ... .

Crawford (1901) asserted that he gave plants of this new heath to the
Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, and thus it was quickly
established in cultivation and was exhibited at meetings of the
Botanical Society of Edinburgh during December 1901, and again in
January 1902. Within a year the heather had been dubbed Erica
crawfordii by horticulturists, and was among the subjects discussed
and exhibited by botanists at the British Association for the
Advancement of Science meeting in Belfast during September 1902.

By November 1905, the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, was
ready to distribute plants of this heather — two were donated to the
Royal Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, and were recorded in the
Glasnevin accessions register as Erica ciliaris [sic] crawfordii’ — this
is the only occasion I have found where it was misnamed as a
variant of E. ciliaris, Dorset heath.

37

THE PUBLICATION OF ERICA CRAWFORDI

The binomial Erica crawfordii has long been consigned to the
proverbial rubbish-bin, yet it is a name that has been published. Is
Erica crawfordii a valid binomial? Can a place of publication with an
accompanying diagnosis or description be traced?

Standard sources (e.g. Prain 1921, McClintock 1973) state that
it was published by G. C. Druce in his List of British plants... issued
in Oxford in January 1908. Druce’s book is correctly denominated a
list as no description accompanied the epithet, which was printed
incorrectly as "Craufordii" and therefore no matter what other
conclusions may be achieved, Druce was not the author, and did not
effectively publish this binomial. In a later note, Druce (1913) stated
that Crawford heath was a double-flowered variant of E. tetralix.

The epithet "crawfordii" was employed in print as early as
November 1902 in the report of the Belfast meeting of the British
Association for the Advancement of Science — at the botany section,
Balfour displayed specimens of ’the new find of E. Crawford? (Balfour
1902; repeated in [Britten] 1902), but there is no diagnosis
accompanying this report.

Balfour seems to have been intrigued by this heather for he
addressed the subject again in 1905 (Anonymous 1905):

At a recent meeting of the Edinburgh Botanical Society ... a highly interesting
description of Crawford’s Heath (Erica tetralix fl.pl.) was given by Professor
Bayley Balfour. The existence of this double variety of E. tetralix is not yet
widely known. It was found in Connemara by Mr F C Crawford a year or two
ago, and, as Professor Balfour said, is a valuable plant for the garden, as well
as interesting as one of the few double Heaths.

It is important to stress that, as far as I can trace, all references
to this double-flowered heather published in horticultural and
botanical books and periodicals before 1911 contain either a Latin
name or a diagnostic phrase, but these two vital ingredients of an
effective publication are never combined; thus none of the references
constitutes valid publication (see Table 1). In the issue of The
Gardeners’ Chronicle dated 10 June 1911, C. F. Ball, Assistant
Keeper of Glasnevin Botanic Gardens, published an article entitled
The double-flowered Erica mackaii which contained a full
description of the plant. However Ball’s account does not constitute
a valid publication because the title of the article indicates that he
considered E. crawfordii was a variant of E. mackaiana.

38

This pretty Erica is identical with the plant known as E. Crawfordii, or
Crawford's Heath, from it having been found by Mr. F. C. Crawford ... Mr
Crawford's plant was, until recently, supposed to be the only specimen from
the wild, but Mr. Praeger informs me that a dried example of this
double-flowered heath has been found among the late Mr. A. G. More’s
collection of E. Mackaii, in the herbarium of the Dublin National Museum ...
The corolla is urn-shaped, undivided unlike that of the type plant, but wider at
the mouth, the inside being closely packed with petals. The essential organs
are absent, so that the doubling whilst not disfiguring the flowers enable them
to last for a longer time. The plant ... forms a spreading tuft about 18 inches
across and 6 inches high. The flowers are pink on the sides exposed to the
sun, and blush or white where unexposed ... .

Thereafter there are numerous references to the double-flowered
form of Mackay’s heath (e.g. Bean 1914; Praeger 1914) but
considering each and every one seems a pointless exercise. The name
Erica crawfordii was established in botanical and horticultural
literature without apparently being published in accord with the
rules of nomenclature now in effect.

CONCLUSION

Although Erica craw/fordii was used as early as 1902 by gardeners
and botanists, I have not yet found a publication in which it can
unequivocally be said to have been published validly.

Botanical epithets at specific and infra-specific ranks have been
published in nurserymen’s catalogues. These names, when
accompanied by a diagnosis, may be effectively published, and thus
they cannot be ignored. In the case of Erica crawfordii, the clear
statements that the heath was named by nurserymen before 1902
suggest that the binomial may be found in catalogues. If
contemporary catalogues containing the heather can be traced —-
none was found by the present author - the nomenclatural
arrangements and the conclusions of this paper may yet be proved
inaccurate.

REFERENCES

ANONYMOUS. 1905. Edinburgh Botanical Society. The garden 67: x (25 March).

F. B. 1914 - see BALL, C. F. 1914

BALFOUR, I. B. 1902. Forms of Erica tetralix from Connemara. The Irish naturalist
11: 287.

BALL, C. F. 1911. The double-flowered Erica mackaii. The gardeners’ chronicle 49
(ser. 3): 372.

39

B., F. [BALL, C. F.] 1914. The double Erica mackaii. Irish gardening 9: 184. [This
article virtually repeats Ball’s 1911 note].

BEAN, W. J. 1914. Trees and shrubs hardy in the British Isles. London: John
Murray.

BERGMANS, J. 1924. Vaste planten en rotsheesters. Haarlem: N. V. Drukkerij
voorheen de Erven Loosjes. (edition 2, 1939. Uitgave: J. H. Faassen-Hekkens).

[BRITTEN, J.]. 1902. The November issue of the Irish Naturalist ...’. Journal of
botany 40: 428-429.

CRAWFORD, F. C. 1901. A double-flowered heath. The garden 60: 121.

DRUCE, G. C. 1908. List of British plants ... . Oxford: Clarendon Press.

DRUCE, G. C. 1913. Plant notes for 1913. report of the Botanical Exchange Club of
the British Isles 1913: 329.

McCLINTOCE, D. 1966. Double-flowered hardy heathers. Journal of the Royal
Horticultural Society 91: 438-443.

McCLINTOCK, D. 1973. The wild heathers of Ireland, in [Report of| Recorders’
conference, Dublin 1972, Dublin: Botanical Society of the British Isles.

MARSHALL, E. S. 1910. [Review of] Anatomy of the British carices. By Francis C.
Crawford ... . Journal of botany 48: 339-341.

NELSON, E. C. 1989. Heathers in Ireland. Botanical journal of the Linnean Society
101: 268-277.

NELSON, E. C. 1995. Erica x stuartii: the authorship reconsidered. Watsonia 20:
275-278.

PAUL, D. 1902. Excursion of the Scottish Alpine Botanical Club to County Kerry in
1901. Transactions and proceedings of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh 22:
163.

PRAIN, D. (editor) 1921. Index Kewensis plantarum phanerogamarum
supplementum quintum. Oxford, Clarendon Press.

PRAEGER, R. LI. 1909. A tourist’s flora of the west of Ireland. Dublin: Hodges,
Figgis & Co.

PRAEGER, R. LI. 1914. Some notes on rarer Irish plants in cultivation. The Irish
naturalist 23: 231-234.

PRAEGER, R. LI. 1938. Irish heaths. Bulletin of the Royal Horticultural and
Arboricultural Society of Ireland 1 (8): 137-138.

REHDER, A. 1927. Manual of cultivated trees and shrubs. New York: The
Macmillan Co. (ed. 2. 1940. New York: The Macmillan Co.).

SCANNELL, M. J. P. & McCLINTOCK, D. 1973. Double-flowered forms of Erica
mackaiana. Watsonia 9: 432.

THOMPSON, H. S. 1910. British and Irish heaths. The gardeners’ chronicle 48
(ser. 3): 333-334.

UPHOF, J. C. T. 1939. Teratologische Beobachtungen an Erica Mackayana Bab.
flore pleno. Berichte der deutschen botanischen Gesellschaft 57: 176-181.

WEBB, D. A. 1956. Biological flora of the British Isles. Erica mackaiana Bab. (E.
mackayi Hook., ined.). Journal of ecology 43: 319-330.

O Dr E. C. Nelson is Taxonomist, National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin.

40
APPENDIX
Erica mackaiana Babington forma multiplicata E. C. Nelson forma nov.

Forma multiplicata a forma typica staminodtis petaloidets octo vel innumerabilibus additis,
antheris defictentibus, vel octo staminibus deformibus filamentis conspicue latis factis
antherisque sterilibus, statim diagnoscenda.

Erica mackaiana f. multiplicata is immediately recognizable from the typical form by 8, or
innumerable additional, petaloid staminodes without anthers, or by 8 deformed stamens with
conspicuously broadened filaments and deformed sterile anthers.

Holotypus: IRELAND, W. County Galway: south of Derryehorraun River, east of
Clifden, E. C. Nelson, 15 August 1980. DBN.

Synonyms:

E. crawfordii hort.: The Irish naturalist 11(November 1902): 287. nom. nud.; Journal
of botany 40 (December 1902): 428-429; R. LI. Praeger, A tourist’s flora of the
west of Ireland (1909): 163; The gardeners’ chronicle 48 (ser. 3) (6 November
1910): 333; C. F. Ball in The gardeners’ chronicle 49 (ser. 3) (10 June 1911):
372.

tetralix flore-pleno I. B. Balfour, The garden 67 (1905): x. nom. illeg.

tetralix subsp. mackayi flore-pleno I. B. Balfour, Transactions and proceedings of
the Botanical Society of Edinburgh 23 (April 1905): 91. nom. illeg.

tetralix var. craufordii G. C. Druce, List of British plants... (1908): 47. nom. nud.

tetralix forma flore pleno G. C. Druce, Report of the Botanical Exchange Club of
the British Isles for 1913 (1914): 329. nom. illeg., descr. en passant.

mackayi var. flore pleno W. J. Bean, Trees and shrubs hardy in the British Isles
(1914): vol. 1, 522. nom. illeg.

mackayi var. pleniflora Bergmans, Vaste planten en rotsheesters (1924): 209.

mackaii var. plena Rehder, Manual of cultivated trees and shrubs (1927): 721.
descr. angl. (cites var. flore pleno Bean).

Specimens examined: IRELAND, West County Galway. Near Roundstone, J. T.
Mackay, 25 November 1835 (DBN). Between Roundstone and Clifden, J. H. Balfour,
10 August 1838 (E). Craigga-more near Roundstone, A. G. More, August 1869
(DBN). hill slope near Carna, A. G. More, August 1874 (DBN). Roundstone, T. J.
Kelly, September 1888 (OXF). near Roundstone, F. C. Crawford, 6 August 1901 (E).
Craignameara, David Paul, 6 August 1901 (E). Craigga More, T. J. Foggitt, 28
August 1926 (BM). north side of the road, about 1 miles E. of Carna, M. J. P.
Scannell, 29 August 1970 (DBN). Hill 201, ex hort. (originally from Craigie Moor), D.
P. Bourke, 13 September 1972 (DBN). bog, by Lough Tawnynalararoe, west of
Cloonagat Lough, M. J. P. Scannell, 9 September 1973 (DBN). Craiggamore, M. J. P.
Scannell & D. McClintock, 23 August 1974 (DBN). Track to Lough Nafeakle,
Connemara, E. C. Nelson, August 1978 (DBN). Bog road near Clifden, O. M.
Stewart, 8 September 1991 (E). West County Mayo. Dooleeg Mor, near
Bellacorvick, E. C. Nelson & C. J. Hora, 12 September 1989 (DBN).

41

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 41-51.

THE HEATHER SOCIETY
24th ANNUAL CONFERENCE 1994
ASKHAM BRYAN COLLEGE, YORKSHIRE

Remembering York in ’94 Dee Daneri
It was time for an adventure!

There were gardens to visit and lands to explore;

September’s promise of heather galore.
With experts to query and a glimpse of the moor,
We headed for York in Ninety-four.

And so it was that we decided to venture East, about 6,000 miles, to
attend an ‘authentic’ convention of The Heather Society. The thought
conjured up prospects of botanizing and meeting fellow heather
enthusiasts. Was it possible that anyone else shared the joy of
heather which had become my obsession? Where would we stay, and
what would we eat? It wasn’t easy to convince Dick that this would
be an experience of a lifetime; not until I mentioned the unisex
showers and baths at Askham Bryan College.

Friday 2 September

The roundabout at Askham Bryan easily led us onto the campus of
this delightful horticultural college. A sprouting bouquet of heather
led us to another bouquet, and then another, until we drove into an
arena that might have been The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party. Steaming,
beautiful tea was a welcome refreshment after a long day of map
reading. People were talking and hugging, and busy organizers were
darting about, seeing to it that no one was without a steaming cup.
Dick and I, ‘draggee” and ‘draggor’, were quickly swept up in the
magic of the moment. Within minutes he had found another draggee,
a beautiful lady from Holland, Lammy Albronda. After six months of
knowing that no-one would speak to us, how quickly we felt harmony
with our new friends. The plant sale was in progress, and heather
honey was available. Tee-shirts, printed from a painting by Brita

-'T cannot find this word in my copy of The shorter Oxford English dictionary, but I did
find ‘dragee ... a sugar plum ... now often, a chocolate drop’. | am told ‘draggee’ is
American for the one who is dragged. [Editor]

42

Johansson, sold quickly, and our reception coordinators made the
entire scene appear as though they did this routinely. We later heard
that Jean Sharpe, Albert Julian, Peter Vickers, and Mr and Mrs
David Mayne were responsible for creating this delightful week-end
for us.

Our quarters were in Building #2. There was some discussion
about the ’Spartan’ living conditions. I don’t know what the exchange
rate would have been in Sparta, but for the price of this convention,
I couldn't have expected more. With rose-colored glasses I remember
a beautiful picture window looking out onto the gardens of the
college. The campus was impressive, plants well labelled - a
botanical experience in its own right. My room had hot and cold
running water in a huge basin, and the desk was much larger than
those at the Savoy. It was quite handy for storing plants and luggage.
The ladies’ toilets were downstairs and to the left. I decided to think
of it as an exercise program thrown in at no extra charge.

Education

After a delightful dinner of scrumptious meat pies it was time to
participate in the Peter Vickers Quiz (now famous the world over).
The plant I.D. game was an excellent opportunity for mixing, and
Peter had done an outstanding job of organizing the material. I
chimed in with Police Lieutenant Judy Anmahian from the North
East Heather Society, and we stood together looking helpless (maybe
it was just me). Andy Collins, who is in charge of the heather
collection at Wisley, and David Small, our chairman and man of all
heather knowledge, soon took pity on us. Don Richards joined in, so
all Judy and I had to do was sit back and wait for the awards. We
were definitely the A Team. Oh dear, oh dear! Andy was fine, but
David began to go down quickly. Our Chairman forgot about
identifying the plants, and started thinking more about what Peter
Vickers’ mind would have done to trick us. Such terms as ‘The
Beast’, and ‘Sneaky’ were uttered, and Judy and I knew we were in
trouble. The B Team won the Besom Broom Award and we learned
that Peter Vickers is very current on his heather inventory.

Saturday 3 September

The AGM was most impressive. David Small was strong at the helm,
but offered an atmosphere of humor and invitation from the
assembly. Prior communication and planning were apparent. Several

a : b/ Lal
Fig. 1. Anne and David Small and Daphne Everett are distracted by a small group of
photographers while everyone else poses for everyone else.

important decisions were made, new appointments were approved,
and Convention ’95 was decided in short order. The only time spent
was in the recognition of resigning treasurer, Des Oliver. A beautiful
Sussex Glass vase was presented, inscribed with the Heather Society
emblem and an inscription recognizing his 17 years of service to the
Heather Society. Well done! The checkbook [cheque book!] was
turned over to in-coming treasurer, Allen Hall. Then there was the
annual photograph! It would be worth the trip to Dublin next year
just to see this event. Heaven forbid that we should find a single
photographer and have everyone buy a copy. I’m quite certain that
my best photograph of the most people is the group of photographers
taking photos of the group. It was time for our first outing! This first
exploration was most anticipatory for me. Brita Johansson was
seated behind me on the bus, and I was practising the correct
pronunciation of Calluna vulgaris ‘Kerstin’, named for Brita’s
daughter. It went something like "Cher-stein, Church-tun, Shurstyn,
Christ-tyne...”.

44

The coach pushed on through tranquil countryside, and sights
of new-mown fields. Some hay was baled and some fields lay waiting
for a saviour from imminent rain. These thoughts were developing
into poetic rhymes, when from behind me came the sound of Walter
Wornick’s voice saying, "Tell me Brita, do you prefer the round bales
or the square bales". For an infusion of humor, Walter was a
constant inspiration. Golden Acres Park, the generous gift of Harry
Ramsden, invited an opportunity to study a public heather garden.
With total access to every man and beast, 24 hours a day, the garden
is a tribute to the generous man who dedicated the property to serve
the public. Mr. Ramsden, we’re told, made his fortune frying his fish
and chips in good beef drippings instead of that ho-hum stuff of the
‘*heart-smart’ generation. However it’s done, we're delighted that Mr.
Ramsden generously donated this lovely profile to the development
of a heather garden. Our coach took a circuitous route around
Harrogate, allowing us more vistas of this celebrated land of
Yorkshire. Actually we got lost, but don’t tell anybody.

The botanical luxury of Harlow Carr was our next stop. It was
rather enchanting to visit Erica carnea "Barry Sellers’, while standing
next to its name-sake. The impromptu summit meeting of the
conference was held in the Calluna garden at Harlow Carr. Our only
rain of the convention was during this visit. Several members of the
tour gathered under a tree and began to chat. I asked Brita if we
might simply change her daughter’s name to Jane. Then we needed
to discuss the pronunciation of Beoley. Everyone knew the answer.
It was definitely "Beu", as in "Beulah". It was definitely "Bee-o-lee’.
It was definitely "Bee-lee" (most popular vote). There was even the
Beowulf pronunciation. Not a bad argument, but please check your
encyclopedia for this pronunciation. Well, that solved, we moved on
to Daboecia. The mecca for me! At last, a chance to introduce the
correct pronunciation of Daboecia to Western America. At first we all
agreed that it was definitely "oe" as in the Greek phoenix. Then there
was discussion about St Dabeoc’, and that the pronunciation should
be something like "Tapioca", but change the t and the p and you're
there. I think our President, David McClintock is responsible for this
one. Oh dear, oh dear! The rain stopped! Or was it Tapiochia! Our

* Pronounced Dav-ock. Had our forefathers had better type-setters and proof-readers,
the plants would be "Dav-ock-ee-ah". [Editor, again!]

45

coach drifted on, carrying us through the fairyland city of Harrogate.
Those Spartans appeared in my head as I enjoyed the enchanting
sites and quietly luxuriated in our chauffeured coach, unknown to
the Spartans and all the most noble until this century. Such were
the hardships of this convention. The chefs at Askham Bryan were
prepared with lovely food after a freshen-up and a visit to the pub.
Odd about the pub! Dick and I enjoy a good malt whisky, but in the
finest restaurants in America we rarely find good malt whisky. There
we were, sipping on this distinguished beverage at Askham Bryan,
living in separate bedrooms, with toilets over the next horizon. It
really was an adventure! Our dinner table was adorned with miles of
Bell’s Extra Special, the whisky, for which we now have a celebrated
Erica carnea. Norrie Robertson was our host, and rumors have it that
the bar was open late that night.

Communication

Communication is the strongest word in the English language. We’d
exercised that at the summit meeting at Harlow Carr and now we
were hearing from Dr Simon Caporn on the effect of pollutants on
heather. Dr Caporn presented an eloquent talk. Everything was
moving along quite nicely until he showed a slide with the effects of
too much animal waste — nitrogen - on the heathers. Other paltry
looking plants demonstrated growth without the pollutants. The
plants in the slides exposed to animal waste showed big vigorous,
blooming plants in the first few years, and then they died. Nearly
everyone in the audience concluded that six years of big blooms
would be good, and wanted to know where they could get the
nitrogen product that was used for the experiment. So much for
communication.

Sunday 4 September

A beautiful Sunday morning led my eyes through my picture window
and across the lovely beds at Askham Bryan. I'd been told the garden
had no summer maintenance. Each bed looked manicured. The
labels will forever be a joy to those of us who are novices,
professionals, or experts checking the references. A morning
presentation by Don Richards was nearly concluded with his opening
remarks. Don announced that upon being introduced to the splendor
of Yorkshire, he "found a wife and fell in love with Eskdale". As the
laughter subsided, I realized that mistresses do come in many

46

disguises. Where is there a pleasing garden that doesn't exhibit a
love affair? (I must admit that it was another six hours before I
learned that Eskdale is a town.)

Botanizing

And then it was a day of botanizing. Imagine those who have gone
before: tents peeking above snowy blizzards, the plant people
determined to move forward, despite the frost-bitten limbs and the
knowledge that not all would return. Food was low, but at any
moment the rarest of the rare would be discovered. The new
botanizers ventured out onto the North York Moors on this date after
the usual nine-course breakfast. Our climate-controlled motor coach
wound through the ageless tranquillity of England, offering purple
countrysides. We entered the North York Moors and were greeted by
Sue Rees, ecologist for the area. Journeying through the villages, Sue
entrenched many familiar statements about preservation. One
concept was new to me, and delightful — village-housing has been
created for descendants of the original village people, enabling them
to remain in the scheme. Our team of botanizers arrived at the
summit, and the exercise commenced. Within four minutes, two
acres of moorland was covered with serious collectors. Within 30
minutes everyone was back on the coach and we were on our way.
After checking out the botanizing finds, it was obvious that the
bouquets of flora were proportionately as large as the position of
importance in The Heather Society. Who would have had the largest
bouquet of sports? Hint: David McClintock had to leave early and
wasn't on the trip. The Sunday night wrap-up was interesting and
fun. Mrs Phyllis Kennedy enticed us with lovely slides of South
African aloes, and others shared excellent slides of great interest,
including the introduction of Erica arborea x carnea cross. Wow! Did
you miss the Yorkshire pudding in Yorkshire, complete with the
traditional meal, as it was presented at our closing dinner? Did you
miss the lady at dinner telling Barry Sellers that she had him in her
garden but he died? Did you miss the salivating splendor of the plant
sale? On the way home, I had a little time to think while flying over
the Atlantic, the North Pole, Alaska, Canada, a bit of the Rockies, the
glaciers, and our beautiful California redwoods. Was this all worth
it? Ten international members visited York this year, and whatever
the home territory, we never ceased to talk about heathers and
everything affiliated with the expansion of heather awareness on the

47

planet. It’s time to think about Dublin in 1995, and when members
of the North American Heather Society ask if it’s worth the trip, I will
answer in perfect English, "You Betcha!"

36 26 26 3k 2 6 ok 3

Another view Ron Cleevely
Having read, listed and indexed all the previous reports of the
Society's conferences and about to become one of its officers, it
seemed that I really should attend the meeting at Askham Bryan
College, near York. Consequently, on Friday 4 September I arrived at
the College after a morning’s drive from Sussex just as the organisers
were completing their preparations. Such promptness was due to
their clear location map and the very noticeable signposts bedecked
with sprigs of Calluna - this just had to be the right place!

Despite turning up at the wrong time, the friendliness that has
always been a feature of such occasions was immediately apparent
and I was welcomed like a friend of long-standing. Within minutes
I had been introduced to several well-known names in the Society’s
affairs, who all echoed identical greetings. Before dinner, I had
identified names known for many years with their real figures and
personalities, realising in the process that I should really have made
an effort years ago and foregone some of the other meetings that had
prevented this.

The array of cultivars lining the route to reception had many
delegates in two minds: "Should we purchase some of Peter Vickers’
plants, while a wide choice was still there, or register and collect our
room key?" In most cases the heathers won, at least, a long look and
lengthy chat about them, whilst Beryl Mayne patiently waited to
direct everyone to suitable quarters. The route to register was also
slowed by the need to greet old friends and discuss cultivars,
exchange news, and bemoan travelling problems — no one seemed to
proceed directly. Once in the foyer, the distraction of the models of
the Cherrybank ‘Mother and child’ statue prompted further
exclamation and delay.

A counter-attraction was David Mayne’s thoughtful sale-stall of
freshly gathered heather honey, but with his E.U. regulated proviso
that no one could guarantee that the ‘workers’ had not stopped off
en route to taste pollen from other flowers. To ensure that we were

48

all adequately identified, David and Anne Small managed to extricate
the box of name-tags from their car, before they too became besieged
by everyone else.

My own pre-conference chats were with Peter Vickers about his
laburnum parquetry table-stools, cornering David Small for his
comments on the draft International Register almost as soon as he
had got out of his car, while the opportunity provided by Albert
Julian to examine his recently acquired copy of the 1911 Backhouse
catalogue of Erica carnea cultivars allowed everyone to enjoy a piece
of heather history.

After burning tongues on scalding steak pies and salving them
with crisp meringues, the whole complement of ’57 delegate varieties’
were soon wagging in groups of five to decipher the answers to the
visual identification quiz compiled by Peter V. In accordance with
modern teaching practice, he patiently went round to each group to
give encouragement, or other enticement as they puzzled over what
may well have been remnants of his forsaken stock of Calluna.
Eventually, to groans and shouts, the answers were declared; often
our answers were not in the correct sequence but two groups had to
face a tie-breaker taken from the new cultivars on show from Wisley.
The winning team was awarded heather besoms as alternative
transport, or garden aids, depending on their affinities. Before
adjourning to the bar, several of the members had informally to carry
out their official duties by considering matters that had been on the
agenda for meetings postponed through earlier transport problems.

Next morning, the business of the AGM proceeded smoothly.
Later, after posing for the customary group photograph and its
derivatives, the party departed for a day of visits.

Eventually, due to limited maps and directions and three
sightings of The Brown Cow - animal rather than pub - as we homed
in on the Golden Acre Park, we found the Harry Ramsden Heather
Garden. It was undoubtedly worth the wait, for the colourful sweeps
of Calluna cultivars provided a mosaic worthy of any modern
abstract painting - and to my eye blended far more satisfactorily.
Even the lower beds of early-flowering Erica carnea provided an
indication of the contrasts they would give in another season. Critical
comment constructively averred that the incorporation of varying
levels would enhance the display, whilst the addition of suitable trees
and shrubs such as birch, dogwood and cherries might give further
contrast. In the absence of labels, due to acquisitive local visitors,

49

members continued the identification quiz of the previous evening by
wandering through the beds deliberating on cultivar identities. My
own particular memory of the occasion is of David McClintock
implementing his interest in reversion by removing all the degenerate
shoots that he could find to ensure stocks remained true. Among
other snatches of conversation were accounts of bark splitting in
different heathers after frost and the varying results suggested that
the structure of the stem might be the cause of differences, but
apparently no work had been carried out in this field.

Spending the afternoon at Harlow Carr, most of the party joined
the conducted tour led by Chris Margrave and proceeded past the
early heather beds and on into the trial areas. The grouping of
various heather cultivars enabled comparisons to be made in situ,
but also with those grown in other gardens. Equally interesting were
the trials of other flowers and vegetables but, although it was
possible to see the best forms, their appearance in September belied
the tests for we learnt once the results had been recorded, usually
in July, nothing more was done. The gardeners amongst the party
badly wanted to cut the sweet peas, while the prolifically flowering
runner-bean ‘Lady Di’ must have been making numerous muted
calls for assistance. After a welcome cup of tea, everyone climbed the
hill to the top of South Field in order to deliberate over the beds of
Calluna, in the end wishing that they had gone there immediately as
a heavy shower prevented the detailed comparison and photographs
that had been intended.

To ensure that everyone was adequately warmed and glowing at
dinner that evening, Bells through Norrie Robertson provided a
miniature of their new whisky to mark the introduction of the new
cultivar Erica carnea ’Bells Extra Special’. The evening’s lecture by
Dr Simon Caporn on the effect of pollutants on heather, apart from
providing detailed information on various influences on heather
growth, revealed the dedication that is required to carry out such
controlled experiments over prolonged periods in difficult terrain and
with limited equipment. His results of exposing heathers to different
combinations of pollutants and fertilisers over a period of 10 years,
to my mind, underlined the dangers of naming new cultivars on the
grounds of their different growth habits and forms.

Sunday began with Don Richards’ revelation that he had become
involved with heathers and Eskdale partly through an episode of
rural blackmail - "If you don’t purchase this field, I'll use it for a

50

piggery!" His lively account of the trials of turning a granite outcrop
into a colourful garden and the learning processes of propagating the
necessary heather plants, entertained everyone for longer than the
scheduled slot. Fortunately, the day’s coach driver made up the time
and even allowed a glimpse of Castle Howard en route to collect Sue
Rees, our guide for the North Yorkshire Moors. Taking advantage of
the coach speaker system, she was able to explain features of
management of the moors as we passed them, to point out
landmarks (such as Roseberry Topping) and to note evidence of past
ways of life ranging from ironstone mining and old railway lines.
During the course of the day, she also mentioned solutions that the
Park had attempted in order to cope with the influx of tourists at
particular times and spots in the North York Moors.

By stopping along Blakey Ridge, just short of the ancient Ralph’s
Cross, everyone was able to gaze down into Rosedale on one side and
Farndale on the other. The thin depth of the peat above the rock
formations was apparent from numerous roadside exposures.
Throughout the moorland, the mosaic of different heather levels
reflected various management policies and contributed to the scenic
effect. Burnt areas of varying sizes and ages ensured that the
growing heather provided the necessary conditions for either sheep
or grouse. Later in the afternoon, on the lowland heaths near Egton,
the encroachment of grasses through over-grazing the heather was
apparent, whilst elsewhere its gradual replacement by bracken was
also in evidence. The North York Moors National Park service has
now introduced measures to limit further loss of the heather moor,
re-instate other neglected areas and ensure that it remains ’the
largest expanse of heather moorland in the country’ (meaning
England rather than the entire United Kingdom).

Using the Moors Centre at Danby, Sue Rees then gave an
excellent lecture explaining the diversity of life on the North York
Moors showing the significance of the heather in the life-cycles and
behaviour patterns of birds, animals and insects and ended her talk
with an account of the various uses mankind has made of heather
over the years. Continuing eastward across the moors, glimpsing the
North Sea and Whitby, we stopped above the natural amphitheatre
of High Horcum to gaze at Levisham Moor and Lockton Low Moor.
Perhaps some spent their time debating whether it was caused by ice
melting, or The Devil, or the angry giant Wade who, legend says,
scooped it out of the earth and thereby also created the nearby

51

Blakey Topping. Others, more heather-oriented, hastily descended
the slopes to find plants of crowberry and cowberry to augment the
lecture and end the trip on the right note.

That evening someone had decided that we had not had enough
exercise so we reached the dining-room only after touring the more
opulent corridors of the College. The conference closed with the
customary Open Forum and slide show. The Chairman demonstrated
the difficulties of describing cultivars using familiar terms by asking
everyone to suggest two suitable words to describe the habit of ‘J. H.
Hamilton’, ’Myretoun Ruby’ and "Minima Smith’s Variety’, words that
would easily separate them. Confusion then prevailed. From the
succession of slides that was shown, the most memorable were those
of the new cross ’Oldenburg’ with its vividly coloured shoot tips, and
a most eloquent shot, taken by Walter Wornick, showing our
President and Chairman, in front of a heather bed, in earnest
conversation about an important Society matter (at least judging by
the rear view of their thoughtful postures). Barry Sellers showed his
video of a trip made last April by several officers of the Society to
various nurseries in Germany that have extensive heather trials. The
intriguing new cultivars, the extent of such establishments and the
propagation methods they used, provided a fascinating end to this
year’s meeting as well as sufficient topics to mull over until the next
occasion.

O Dee Daneri is First Vice President-elect 1995-1996 of the North American
Heather Society.

2 Ron Cleevely is a member of the council of the Heather Society, anid Assistant
Editor of the Yearbook. j

52

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 52-57.

CULTIVAR & SPECIES NOTES

CULTIVARS REGISTERED to 31 OCTOBER 1994

127 Erica carnea ‘Gelber Findling’

Registered 1 September 1994: Fritz Kircher, Hamburg, Germany.
Foliage yellow; flowers rose (H11), January to March; the habit is more compact
than most other yellow-foliaged cultivars of E. carnea, and it is in bloom some two
weeks earlier. A seedling found in the garden of Fritz Kircher, Hamburg, in 1981.

128 Erica carnea 'Hamburg’

Registered 1 September 1994: Fritz Kircher, Hamburg, Germany.
A free-flowering plant; foliage dark green; flowers dark violet (H10), January to
March contrasting well with the foliage. A seedling found in the garden of Fritz
Kircher, Hamburg, in 1987.

129 Calluna vulgaris ‘Loni’

Registered 1 September 1994: Fritz Kircher, Hamburg, Germany.
Foliage golden yellow in spring, bronzy later; flowers violet-red (H13), August to
October. A seedling found in the garden of Fritz Kircher, Hamburg, in 1986.

130 Erica x veitchii 'Brockhill’

Registered 29 October 1994: David McClintock, Platt, Kent.
Vigorous, tall (to c. 3.5 m), hardy seedling, said to have originated between the
wars at Veitch’s Nursery near the Bayne-Powell family home of Brockhill, Devon.

compiled by D. McCLINTOCK (Registrar)

NEW ACQUISITIONS

Descriptions in this list were made from plants that were two years old, grown in open
ground in a small garden on the coastal plain in north-western England. The soil is
a heavy clay. The heather garden is top-dressed with moss peat.

Calluna vulgaris

‘Alexandra’

A seedling raised by Kurt Kramer, Edewecht-Stiddorf, Germany, c. 1991.

Ref: Yb. Heather Soc. 1994: 39.
Cerise buds, deeper red than ‘Marlies’; upright, bushy habit; dark green foliage.
October-January.

53

‘Cilcennin Common’
A wild seedling found in Dyfed about 2 miles from his nursery by nurseryman, John
L. Jones, Glynwern Nursery, Cilcennin, Lampeter, Dyfed, Wales; introduced c. 1992.
[new name]
Earliest bud-flowering cultivar to show colour, deep purple-red buds; low, open
habit with arching branches; dark green foliage. August-October.

‘Flaming Silver’
A sport found on ’Silver Knight’, at Twin Acre Nursery, near Knutsford, Cheshire.
Ref: Yb. Heather Soc. 1994: 40.
Grey foliage with yellow and flame coloured young shoots, upright habit; lavender
flowers like its parent. August-September.

*Golden Blazeaway’

A sport found on 'Blazeaway’ by John L. Jones, Glynwern Nursery, Cilcennin,

Lampeter, Dyfed, Wales; introduced in 1994.

[new name]
Differs from its parent in keeping its intense gold foliage in winter, making a very
nice plant. August-September. (Mr Jones reports that this cultivar is disease-
resistant).

*Sandhammaren’
A seedling found east of the Beacon of Sandhammaren, Skane, Sweden, by K. Olsson,
in 1987.
Ref: Yb. Heather Soc. 1993: 46.
Bud-flowering cultivar; crimson buds of a good colour but does not produce many
flowers; tall, upright habit; bright green foliage.

‘Silver Fox’
A seedling found near 'Silver Queen’ in his nursery by John L. Jones, Glynwern
Nursery, Cilcennin, Lampeter, Dyfed, Wales; introduced in 1992.
[new name].
Lavender flowers on long, upward arching stems; open habit (similar to 'Oxshott
Common’); silver-grey foliage. August-September (- October in Dyfed).

‘Sonny Boy’
Seedling of Darkness’, found by H. Hatje, Tornisch-Ahrenlohe, Germany in 1987;
introduced by him in 1992.
Ref: Yb. Heather Soc. 1993: 46.
Violet flowers; broad, upright habit, making it a neat plant; gold foliage.
September-October.

Erica carnea

‘Moonlight’

A seedling raised by nurseryman, P. Bakuysen, Boskoop.

Ref: Yb. Heather Soc. 1993: 45.
Yellow-green foliage, turing orange in winter; habit more compact than
’"Foxhollow’.

54

Erica carnea x arborea
‘Ammerland’
A hybrid deliberately raised by Kurt Kmamer, Edewecht-Siiddorf, Germany, c. 199?
Ref: Der Heidegarten nr 35: 14 (1994)
Pink flowers; open habit; mid-green foliage; after two years 30 cm tall x 40 cm
spread. Appearently hardy in northwestern England.

Erica cinerea
‘Celebration’
A seedling found in his nursery by John L. Jones, Glynwern Nursery, Cilcennin,
Lampeter, Dyfed, Wales; to be available in small numbers during 1995.
[new name]
White flowers (few in July-September); prostrate habit, long curling stems; intense
gold foliage in autumn, later lime-green; August-September.

‘Golden Striker’
A seedling in the garden of nurseryman John Proudfoot, Methven, Perthshire,
Scotland.
{new name]
Amethyst flowers; unusual habit, weeping branches radiate from the centre of the
plant rising at the tips; gold foliage. July-August.

‘Nocturne’

A seedling raised by John Proudfoot, Methven Perthshire, Scotland.

[new name]
A minute plant similar to Erica cinerea "Dark Clouds’ (also raised by John
Proudfoot) which is taller; beetroot flowers; very dark green foliage; August-
October.

Erica x darleyensis

'Epe’

Found growing in his garden in Emst, Holland, by J. Dogger, c.1982
Mauve-rose flowers; broad upright habit; dark green leaves but with beautiful
yellow spring growth lasting well into summer; February-April.

compiled by J. PLATT
Fern Bank, 176 Southport Road, Ulnes-Walton PR5 3LN, Lancashire

[Additional notes on his own cultivars by John JONES
Glynwern Nursery, Cilcennin, Lampeter SA48 8RJ, Dyfed]

55

NEW SPECIES & COMBINATIONS

(Erica excelsa (Alm & T. C. E. Fries) H. J. Beentje illegitimate combination) = E. rossii
L. T. Dorr (see below)
Ufafiti 3: 13 (1990); (basionym Philippia excelsa Alm & T. C. E. Fries) because of
E. excelsa Tausch this new combination is a later homonym and therefore
illegitimate.
Erica mafiensis (Engler) L. T. Dorr
Novon 4: 220 (1994); comb. nov. (basionym Philippia mafiensis Engler)
Erica rossii L. T. Dorr
Novon 4: 220 (1994); new name for E. excelsa (Alm & T. C. E. Fries) H. J. Beentje
non Tausch

CULTIVAR NAMES NEW TO THE REGISTRAR

Editorial note - because some of the names listed below are not validly published
according to the International code of nomenclature for cultivated plants, all descriptive
phrases, which would validate these names herein, have been omitted. Members are
reminded that they should abide by the Code when naming new cultivars. E.C.N.

‘Abbotswood' Erica x darleyensis Exhibited at RHS Show, Augus
1994 by Bullivant.
‘Amethyst’ Calluna vulgaris Seedling from Kurt Kramer,
Edewecht-Siiddorf, Germany.
‘Ammerland' Erica arborea x carnea Seedling bred by Kurt Kramer,
Edewecht-Siiddorf, Germany.
‘Anderton’ Andromeda polifolia Seedling from near Nierburg,
Germany.
‘Anne’ Calluna vulgaris Reported to German Patent
Office in 1994.
‘Arielle’ Daboecia cantabrica Seedling bred by Kurt Kramer,
Edewecht-Stiddorf, Germany.
‘Ashlea Gold’ Erica manipuliflora Seedling bred by J. Griffiths,
xX vagans Garforth, W. Yorkshire.
‘Bicolor Beetroot' Erica x stuartii Heather news 4(3): 6 (1994).
‘Berrydown A' Daboecia cantabrica From Berrydown Nurseries,
[illegitimate] Gidleigh, Devon.
‘Berrydown B' Daboecia cantabrica From Berrydown Nurseries,
[illegitimate] Gidleigh, Devon.
‘Berrydown E' Daboecia cantabrica From Berrydown Nurseries,
[illegitimate] Gidleigh, Devon.
‘Bill Brewer' Daboecia cantabrica From Berrydown Nurseries,

Gidleigh, Devon.
‘Brockhill' Erica x veitchii (see List of registered heathers)

56

‘Celebration’
‘Cilcennin Common
‘Djinn’

‘Elaine’

‘Forty-niner Gold’

‘Golden Blazeaway'
‘Golden Sunrise’

‘Gold Leaf Scotch’
‘Heidi’

‘Holiday’

‘Indian Road Runner’

‘Janek'

‘Kristal’
‘Oldenburg’
‘Peter Gurney'

‘Purple Beauty

‘Red Beauty’

‘Rose Bay'

‘Silver Bells'

‘Silver Fox'
‘Simone’

Erica cinerea
Calluna vulgaris
Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris
Calluna vulgaris
Calluna vulgaris
Calluna vulgaris
Erica quadrangularis
(syn. E. persoluta)

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris
Erica arborea x carnea
Daboecia cantabrica

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Daboecia cantabrica

Calluna vulgaris
Calluna vulgaris

(see New Acquisitions above)
(see New Acquisitions above)
Seedling from Benoit Choteau,
Binche, Belgium; c. 1990.
Seedling from Pamela Rodwell,
Upminster Lodge Nurseries,
Upminster, Essex.

Listed by Heather Heaven of
Humboldt, Fortuna, California,
USA.

(see New Acquisitions above)
from John L. Jones, Glynwern
Nursery, Cilcennin, Lampeter,
Dyfed, Wales; before 1994.
Listed by Melligens Mail Order,
Ohio, USA.

Reported to German Patent
Office in 1994.

USA patented name.

Seedling from R. M. Steele, Rose
Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Sport on ‘Marleen’ with Kepels;
reported to German Patent
Office in 1994.

Seedling from Mrs. B.
Johansson, Vargén, Sweden.
Seedling bred by Kurt Kramer,
Edewecht-Siiddorf, Germany.
From Berrydown Nurseries,
Gidleigh, Devon.

Sport on ‘Dark Beauty’
reported to the German Patent
Office in 1994.

Sport on ‘Dark Beauty’
reported to the German Patent
Office in 1994.

Seedling from R. M. Steele, Rose
Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Seedling from David Wilson,
Sardis, British Columbia,
Canada.

(see New Acquisitions above)
Reported to German Patent
Office in 1994.

‘Sir Anthony
Hopkins'

‘Stoneyhurst Alba’
[illegitimate]
‘Spring Surprise’

‘Sunset’
‘Sylvester’

‘Teenage Crush’

‘Tom Cobley’

‘Waterfall’

‘Gleneagles’

‘Little John'

‘Marianne’

‘Renate’
‘Silberglanz’

‘Weinroter Oktober'

‘Winter Rubin’

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Erica x darleyensis

Erica quadrangularis
(syn. E. persoluta)
Calluna vulgaris

Erica x watsonii

Daboecia cantabrica

Erica manipuliflora

57

Seedling from N. Sheldon,
Wrenvale Nurseries,
Ammanford, Dyfed, Wales.
Exhibited at RHS Show by
D. R. Strauss, Kent.
Seedling from K. Kramer,
Edewecht-Siiddorf, Germany;
introduced by Kingfisher
Nursery, Gedney Hill,
Lincolnshire.

USA patented name.

Reported to German Patent
Office in 1994.

Seedling from David Wilson,
Sardis, British Columbia,
Canada.

From Berrydown Nurseries,
Gidleigh, Devon.

Seedling from Otters’ Court
Heathers, West Camel,
Somerset.

CULTIVAR NAMES
AMPLIFICATIONS & AMELIORATIONS

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Erica tetralix
Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Calluna vulgaris

Corrected spelling (Yb. Heather
Soc. 1994: 40).

Named after the finder's father
not finder (Yb. Heather Soc.
1993: 49).

Geldern is in Germany not The
Netherlands (Yb. Heather Soc.
1994: 41).

Flower colour is pink not white
(Yb. Heather Soc. 1993: 46).
Corrected spelling (Yb. Heather
Soc. 1994: 42).

Geldern is in Germany not the
Netherlands (Yb. Heather Soc.
1994: 42).

In error listed as a cultivar of
Erica carnea {Yb. Heather Soc.
1994: 43).

58

Yb. Heather Soc. 1995: 58-66.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS
& BOOK REVIEWS

ADLER, W., OSWALD, K. & FISCHER, R. 1994. Exkursionsflora von Osterreich.
Ulmer.
Records Erica tetralix new to Austria at Angertal, near Badgastein, in the Alps
south of Salzburg.

AEDO, C. et alii 1994. Contribuciones al conocimiento de la flora Cantabrica, II.
Fontqueria 40: 67-100.
Erica vagans noted from Merino’s herbarium, collected at La Peroja, Orense,
Cantabria, Spain.

ANONYMOUS 1994. Grubs up, among the bonnie heather. The Guardian (5 May)
Depredations of the winter moth on Scottish wild heather.

— 1994. Heather clones will improve quality. Horticulture week 214 (3): 6.
50 clones chosen by BHGA and Horticultural Research Institute.

— 1994. Heathers, Amateur gardening (22 June): 26.
Notes on Erica carnea, E. x darleyensis, E. arborea and E. lusitanica.

— 1994. Nursery stock. Horticultural week 215 (25 June).
Lists with descriptions, Erica carnea ‘Isabell’, 'Nathalie’, "Pink Mist’, "Red
Jewel’, and ‘Rosalie’.

—— 1994. Spotlight on heathers during national festival. Horticulture week 216
(7): 5.
BHGA and first national heather festival in October 1994.

— 1994. Lime tolerant heathers. Organic gardening (September).
Horticulture Research International has developed lime-tolerant clones of
Erica, but it does not say which species.

— 1994. Dutch treat. Yorkshire Post 2 September: 3.
Photograph of David Cussons of Forest Enterprises among the heather he cuts
and exports to Holland for use as filters.

— 1994.The Heather House at Florence Court. Newsletter National Trust.
Northem Ireland Region (Spring): [3].
Restoration of summerhouse - see this Yearbook, p 4.

ANDREWS, S. [1994]. Why plants change their names. (folded leaflet). Royal
Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Useful, explanatory leaflet; quotes examples of name changes and conserved
names (e.g. Erica carnea, E. vagans). Free from RBG, Kew.

BAUMANN, H. (translated & augmented by W. T. STEARN & E. R. STEARN).
1993. Greek wild flowers and plant lore in ancient Greece. Pp 252, illustrated.
The Herbert Press, London. ISBN 1-871569-57-5. UK& 16.95.
Erica arborea illustrated within a pocket-sized book that splendidly weaves
Greek native plants and lore. Gods, demigods, heroes and the Classical

DO Unsigned notes by David McClintock.

59

scholars from Theophrastus and Hippocrates onwards provide the
mythological and historial background. Tree heaths supplied wood for charcoal
manufacture; there is no mention of any medicinal use for Erica. [ECN]

BECKETT, E. 1993. Illustrated flora of Mallorca. Pp 224, illustrated. Editorial Moll,
Torre de l’Amor, 4, 07001 Palma de Mallorca. ISBN 84-273-07 14-4.

In the style of the famous British wildflower book by the Rev. W. Keble Martin,
with pages of brief text opposite pages full of adequate watercolour sketches.
Erica arborea and E. multiflora, with Arbutus unedo appear on plate 47. A large
book, so not suitable for use as a field handbook, but useful for identifying the
flora of the Balearic Islands. [ECN]

BEENTJE, H. J. 1990. Name changes in east African Ericaceae. Utafiti 3: 13.

New combinations from Philippia to Erica, for P. excelsa (see DORR, L. T.
1994. below), P. trimera, P. trimera ssp. keniensis, P. trimera ssp. elgonensis,
P. manii and P. manii ssp. usumbarensis.

BLUNT, W. & STEARN W. T. 1994. The art of botanical illustration. Pp 368:

illustrated. Antique Collectors’ Club, Woodbridge. ISBN 1-85149-177-5.

UKE 29.50.

A sumptuous reprise of an outstanding book (originally published in 1950 in
the Collins’ New Naturalist series); new colour plates of very high quality have
been added and the book redesigned. Bauer and Sowerby are represented by
Erica spp., and there is a paragraph on Miss Maud Mabel Page, 'the first of the
twentieth century botanical artists resident in South Africa’, for whom E.
pageana was named. A classic, in every sense, that every serious botanist and
gardener should own. [ECN]

BRAUN, E. L. 1989. Woody plants of Ohio. Ohio State University, Columbus.

Erica tetralix apparently adventive, Youngstown, Mahoning County; Calluna
vulgaris spontaneous and persistent, Trumbull County (p. 287).

BUCHAN, U. 1994. Time to take to the heath. Sunday Telegraph 27 March: 26.
The Wisley collection.

CHAPMAN, S, B. & ROSE, R. J. 1994. Changes in the distribution of Erica ciliaris
L. and E. x watsonii Benth. in Dorset, 1963-1987. Watsonia 20: 89-95.
Changes in relative proportion of Dorset heath and its hybrids with E. tetralix
caused mainly by afforestation and heathland fires, but E. ciliaris still
spreading. Includes detailed maps.

CHARLESWORTH, G. B. 1994. A gardener obsessed. Observations, reflections, and
advice for other dedicated gardeners. Pp [x], 244, [2]: 8 pp colour plates. David
R. Godine, 300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston MA 02115.

ISBN 0-56792-002-0. US$ 24.95.

Geoffrey's done it again! A bountiful, sharply written book, ripe as a gentian’s
seed-capsule, witty, full of laconic advice, based firmly in the soil of
Massachusetts. Essentially a treat for envious alpine enthusiasts, it will be
equally delighful for every plantsman in North America or western Europe.
Gentians, saxifrages and countless seed-raised exotica predominate, while
Calluna in variety blooms from August to October (illustrated in colour) and as
for Erica camea ‘collecting forms [sic] can be addictive.’ Quite! [ECN]

-CHos, E. 1994. Atlas de la flore des Hautes Alpes. Conservatoire botanique
national, Gap-Charance.

Calluna reaching 2100 m (p. 371).

60

CLARK, S. 1993. One garden. Garden design (September/October).

The Thompsons’ garden at Manchester, California (see OLSEN, K. M. below.)

DALY, G. 1994. Plant association. Enlivening heathers. The Irish garden 3 (4): 11.
’,.. there is no more lifeless combination than heathers and dwarf conifers...’.

DAVIS, B. 1994. Winter heathers. The gardener (November): 33.

’... will give a long lasting splash of colour’.

DENKEWITZ, L. 1994. Rosmarinheide. Gartenpraxis 9/94: 18-22.

An excellent, well-illustrated summary of cultivars of Andromeda - ’there are
not many cultivars, but great muddles with their names.’

DORR, L. T. 1994. A new name and combination in East African Erica (Ericaceae:
Ericoideae). Novon 4: 220.

A new name is proposed for Erica excelsa (Alm & T. C. E. Fries) H. J. Beentje,
which is a later homonym of E. excelsa Tausch [E. rossii L. T. Dorr, named
after Robert Ross, former Keeper of Botany at the Natural History Museum,
London]. In addition a new combination in Erica based on Philippia mafiensis
Engler is proposed [E. mafiensis (Engler) L. T. Dorr] (see also BEENTJE, H. J.).

ELLIS, R. G. 1994. - see PERRY, A. R. & ELLIS, R. G. (below).

GREENOAK, F. 1994. Preserving our garden heritage. The Garden 119: 212-213
Photographs of Wisley’s national collection of heathers, and brief mention.

GREUTER, W. et alii (editors) 1994. International code of botanical nomenclature
(Tokyo code) adopted by the fifteenth International Botanic Congress,
Yokohama, August-September 1993.. Koeltz Scientific Books, Kénigstein.

A fundamental document governing plant names, listing for the first time the
conserved specific names Erica carnea L. and E. vagans L. (in Appendix IIIB
Nomina specifica conservanda et rejicienda).

HARTL, H. et alii. 1992. Verbreitungsatlas der Farn- u Bltitenpflanzen Kamtens.
Klagenfurt.

Distribution maps; Calluna vulgaris in almost every square (p. 109); Erica
carnea common in south, scattered elsewhere.

JEFFREY, D. W. 1992. Is there a serpentine flora in Ireland?, in BAKER, A. J. M.,
PROCTOR, J. & REEVES, R. D. (editors). The vegetation of ultramafic
(serpentine) soils. Pp xx, 508; illustr. Intercept, Andover. ISBN 0-946707-62-6.
UKS& 47.50.

Notes presence of Calluna vulgaris , among other species, on serpentine rocks
on Croagh Patrick, County Mayo. The book, as a whole, makes no other
reference of heathers - strangely, disappointingly, there is no study of the
English serpentine habitats on The Lizard, Cornwall, where Erica vagans is
prevalent. Otherwise a masterful, indispensable academic text. [ECN]

JOHANSSON, B. 1993. Den som graverens grot. Hemtradgarden mr 3: 12-15.
Glorious photograph of her garden.

—— 1994. Odsby plantskola. Hemtradgarden nr 1:25.

The Olofssons’ nursery with a photograph of their foliage heathers.

KELLY, J. 1994. All-weather heaths. Amateur gardening (29 January): 14-15.
Winter flowerers.

KNIGHT, A. 1993. Proven performers. Heathers. American horticulturist (February):
14-19 (and cover).

A good summary with some stunning photographs.

61

McCLINTOCK, D. 1994. Erica, in PRESS, J. R. & SHORT, M. J. (compilers). Flora
of Madeira. pp. 249-250. Natural History Museum, London.
Account of the 4 species recorded from the island.

— 1994. Bud-flowering heathers. The garden 119: 543.

Good account of Calluna vulgaris variants, including Kurt Kramer's new
cultivars.

MARGRAVE, C.1993. Callunas. Northern gardener (Summen): 24-25.

With photographs of Albert Julian’s collection at Harlow Carr.

NELSON, E. C. 1994. - see PERRY, A. R. & ELLIS, R. G. (below)

OLIVER, E. G. F. & OLIVER, I. M. 1994. Studies in the Ericoideae (Ericaceae).
XIV. Notes on the genus Erica . Bothalia 24: 25-33.

Continuing contribution to the elucidation of Cape species, including a
commentary on Erica leptostachya Guthrie & Bolus, described from William
McNab’s herbarium and allegedly African but which is E. scoparia. Also
included, inter alia, are comments about the publication dates of Andrews’
Coloured engravings of heaths (e.g. part 8 is dated 1 June 1797).

OLSON, K. M. 1994. Jim Thompson. Flower and garden (July) 40-41.

His garden at Manchester, California, with 250 cultivars of heather.

OSTERLOH, A. 1994. Probleme mit Heidegarten. Gartenpraxis 2/94: 40-41.

_ The effects of ageing, shade, etc.

PERRY, A. R. & ELLIS, R. G. (editors). 1994. The common ground of wild and
cultivated plants. Introductions, invasions, control and conservation. (Botanical
Society of the British Isles Conference Report 22). Pp x, 166; illustrated.
Amgueddfa Genedlaethol Cymru (National Museum of Wales), Cardiff.

ISBN 0-7200-0408-X.

Brief mentions of heathers within chapters by R. G. Ellis (British wild species
and varieties in gardens) and E. C. Nelson (Ergasiophygophytes in the British
Isles - plants that jumped the garden fence). [E.C.N.]

PHILLIPS, S. 1994. Shrub of the week. Daboecia. Daily Mail Weekend 1 October.
A brief encomium.

ROBINSON, D. 1994. South African heathers. The Irish garden 3 (4): 24.

With colour photograph of Erica canaliculata.

—— 1994. Cape heaths deserve a second look. Horticulture & landscape Ireland 2
(2): 14-15.

Earlier version of paper in this Yearbook with colour photographs of Erica
glandulosa and E. cruenta, and exceptionally poor, black-and-white
photographs of other Cape heaths (the photographs are all reprinted in colour
in part 3 of the same periodical.) [E.C.N.]

RYVERDA, L. 1994. Ericaceae, in Norges Plantes. pp. 151-155. J. W. Capperlens
Forlag.
Calluna (reislyng), Erica cinerea (purpurlyng) with coloured drawing, E. tetralix
(poselyng).

SCOTT, M. 1994, All around the blooming heather. Wildlife 12 (2): 44.
Scotland’s wildlife habitats.

SHRIMPTON, J. 1993. Capel Manor report. Winter-flowering heathers. Gardening
from Which November: 42.

Brief notes on Erica carnea, E. erigena and E. x darleyensis.

62

SILVA PANDO, F. J. 1994. Flora y series de vegetaci6n de la Sierra de Ancares.
Fontqueria 40: 233-388.

Floristic catalogue from the Sierra de Ancares range, between the
northwestern Spanish provinces of Leén and Lugo, recording 1065 taxa,
including Calluna vulgaris, Daboecia cantabrica, and 6 spp. of Erica, with
Arbutus and Vaccinium.

SMALL, D. 1994. Budding success. Amateur gardening (15 January): 34.
Bud-flowering heathers.

— 1994. Good breeding always shows. Amateur gardening (19 February): 11.
Good new cultivars; photograph of Erica carnea ‘Isabell’.

— 1994. Getting started. Amateur gardening (26 March): 10.

How to choose plants.

— 1994. Trim time. Amateur gardening (30 April): 11
Pruning.

— 1994. Fungi fighting. Amateur gardening (4 June): 11.

Calluna more prone to fungal attack than Erica.

— 1994. It's no dying matter. Amateur gardening (8 July): 12.

More heather die from drought than from all other problems put together.

— 1994. A ripe time for cuttings. Amateur gardening (13 August): 12.
Propagation.

— 1994. Planting time has arrived. Amateur gardening (17 September): 10
Good advice.

— 1994. The autumn colour producers. Amateur gardening (2 October): 12.
Praise for double Calluna cultivars; photographs of C. vulgaris ‘Annemarie’.

SWARTZ, J. 1994. Hardy heathers happy under the snow. The Monadnock
Shoppers News (9 March): 11.

The very different winter weather in New Hampshire.

van de LAAR, H. J. 1993. Vakbeurs Plantarium '93. Dendroflora 30: 72-73.
Calluna vulgaris 'Beoley Silver’ given a silver medal.

VIEMONT, J.-D. & LAMBERT, C. 1994. Transformation of the root system by
Agrobacterium rhizogenes changes rhythmic growth of the shoot of Erica x
darleyensis in vitro. Annals of botany 73: 603-608.

The bacterium not only modifies the root system but also dampens the
morphogenetic rhythm of the apical bud.

VILLAR, L. 1993. Ericaceae, in CASTROVEILJO, S. et alii (eds). Flora Iberica. Vol.
4, pp. 484-507. Real Jardin Botanica, Madrid.

A full account of Calluna and Erica spp. in Spain with line drawings of eight
species, including E. andevalensis.

ZAJAC, M. 1992. Index of general distribution maps of vascular plants of Poland.
Polish Botanical Studies guidebook series 7. Krakow.

Sources of maps for Andromeda, Calluna, and Erica tetralix.

63

REVIEWS

T. Whilde. The natural history of Connemara.
1994. Pp 336; illustrated. Immel Publishing, London. ISBN 0-907151-91-4. IR& 28.90

Connemara is a heather-filled corner of western Ireland that Tony Whilde knows and
loves. His book is an explanation of the landscape, its rocks, plants and animals,
illustrated with maps, diagrams and colour photographs. There is an incomparable
bibliography of perhaps 1000 items - for that Tony deserves unreserved praise. i will
be consulting it frequently.

I wish I could be entirely wholehearted in my praise for other segments of his
approachable book, but there are some strange lapses. At least two photographs are
incorrectly captioned, that on p. 70 shows Calluna vulgaris (ling) not bell heather, and
that on p. 101 illustrates Erica tetralix (cross-leaved heath) not Mackay’s heath. It is
unfortunate that modern accounts of the distributions of Erica and Daboecia species
were not consulted; for example, Mackay’s heath cccurs far beyond the boundaries of
the ’province of Oviedo’. There are other factual errors - the first published reference
to Daboecia cantabrica in western Ireland appeared in 1704 (not 1699). Be that as it
may, this will be a valuable guide for visitors to Connemara because it will enable
them better to understand a beautiful, heathery land.

E. C. Nelson
National Botanic Gardens, Dublin

Margaret Atherden. Upland Britain. A natural history.
1992. Pp xv, 224 + 8 pp colour plates. Manchester University Press, Manchester.
ISBN 0-7190-3494-9 (paperback) £12.99. 0-7190-3493-0 (hardback) £40.

After reading this book I can only agree with David Bellamy’s comment that it is
‘written with authority and affection’. The author’s awareness of every facet involved
in the post-glacial development of these regions of Britain over the past 15,000 years,
ensures it is comprehensive. However, as the book is intended for all who have an
interest in, or care about such regions, many of whom are not ecologists, Latin names
are omitted from its very readable text (the more academically-minded are provided
with a glossary).

Comprising almost a third of Britain, these areas are this country’s most
important wildlife resource, although now only containing semi-natural, or artificial
communities. Beginning with an account of the physical features that contribute to
the diverse habitats found in the upland regions, there is a chapter on each: mountain
tops, pine woods, deciduous woodlands, moorlands, wetlands, coniferous plantations

-and grasslands, in which the author also records the different phases of human
impact. An account of the additional ecological niches provided by roads, railways,
walls & hedges indicate that not all human activity has been harmful. A final chapter
extends this interaction between wildlife and man by considering the future and some

64

of the various conservation schemes that exist. A reference section for each chapter
allows further research.

Society members will be primarily interested in the chapter on ‘Heather
moorlands’. This contains a historical account of their development following
abandonment of the cleared ancient woodland sites in late Mesolithic times to a
maximum during the nineteenth century. Before discussing types of management by
grazing and regular burning, the author mentions the wildlife that inhabits this
environment, then deals with the modern problems arising from over-grazing,
continued burning and the encroachment of bracken. To substantiate this, the
chapter concludes with in depth accounts of Dartmoor and the North York Moors -
two significant areas for which there are detailed records. Some disappointment might
be felt at the single roadside photograph of Erica cinerea and E. tetralix growing on the
North York Moors and disagreement with the comment that the individual flowers of
heathers are un-spectacular’, but then it has to be admitted we are prejudiced.

Undoubtedly a book full of information & well worth reading and - at the
paperback price — worth having. Margaret Atherden has ‘uplifted’ general knowledge
of such regions by combining consideration of heathland and moorland in contrast to
Oliver Rackham in his History of the countryside (1986) and then adding an ecological
perspective to her historical account that is an improvement on Millward and
Robinson's Upland Britain (1980) in which the word heather does not even occur!. My
main criticism has to be the inadequacy of the index - but that is the fault of the
publishers.

Ron Cleevely
Midhurst, Sussex

D. Lambie. Introducing heather. Scotland’s most remarkable

plant.
1994. Pp 48; colour illustrations. Firtree Publishing Ltd., Ben Nevis Industrial Estate,
Fort William PH33 6PR. ISBN 1-872825-04-4. UK& 3. 85

Written by the proprietor of one of Scotland’s best known heather nurseries, this is an
attractively produced small book. There are many illustrations, mostly colour
photographs of high quality. Three of the first colour pictures of heather show flowers
about 3 to 3.5 cm across, that is to say about 10 times natural size! So they look
gigantic. Among the black and white photographs are eight of useful objects made of
heather: baskets, brooms, rope, doormats and pot scrubbers.

Apart from horticulture, the easily readable text covers the naluen history of
heather and heather heathlands and their exploitation, as well as present and past
uses of heather; all that takes twenty pages. Particular topics include dyes, heather
drinks, honey and medicinal properties. I hope it is just a slip but I must point out
that it is not seeds that are pollinated; it is the flowers, from which develop the seeds,
that are pollinated (p. 5).

Twenty four pages are devoted to heather gardening and the brief description of
some cultivars of Calluna and other members of the family. Sixteen are illustrated in
colour, again some much magnified.

65

There are no suggestions for further reading and so the reader cannot take any
of the topics further. This is a pity, I think. Though the author makes it clear that
heather moors are maintained by burning there is no explicit statement that these
moors at low to moderate altitudes are the product of hundreds, indeed thousands,
of years of human effects and have replaced woodlands. If these effects abate then
invasion by bracken, birch and oak can quickly follow. So the glorious purple moors
of the eastern Highlands of Scotland are the product of very long-term land-use. The
works of Professor C. H. Gimingham on heather and heathlands are the standard
sources.

J. H. Dickson
University of Glasgow

Anne-Maria Brennan. Over the garden wall.
1994. Pp 40; colour illustrations. Channel 4 Television, 60 Charlotte Street, London
W10 2AX. ISBN 1-85144-099-2. £ 4.95.

This book accompanied a series of eight half-hour programmes produced for Channel
4 by Flashback Television and first broadcast during June and July 1994. In its A4-
sized pages is a considerable amount of useful background information on many of
the plants and habitats which featured in the television presentations, together with
suggestions for further reading, names and addresses of specialist societies and plant
suppliers, neatly rounded off with a glossary.

The book deals with the eight habitats, including heaths, which were covered by
the programmes. The ecological description for each is concise and well-written and
presents the major features of the habitat in a readily understood but not simplistic
fashion.

A particularly good feature of the book is the focus in each chapter on one or
more of the National Collections of plants such as shrubby cinquefoils, heathers or
Clematis which are a feature of the garden or habitat under discussion. Informative
tips on propagation and cultivation are complemented by troubleshooting hints, and
I was pleased to see that Dr Brennan has included a range of plants for starters as
well as for the more adventurous gardeners.

The text is enlivened with a profusion of colour pictures, some of habitats, others
of particular plants in their habitats and some close-ups of individual blooms. In my
opinion, the last group were the least effective, particularly where a good photograph
of a single, isolated flower has been edited so that it has no background and is then
used a space-filler - a particularly good example of this is the treatment of the Grass
of Parnassus flower on p. 25. Many of the photographs are excellent, but it is a pity
that such a lot have had to be reduced to near postage stamp size, presumably
because of printing costs and pressure on space. The overall effect could have been
so much better if the pictures had been reproduced at a sensible size so that readers
could have appreciated their quality more readily. This would have increased the cost
of the book, and the marketing people would be unhappy - but I suspect that people
would still have paid a pound or two more for what is really good companion volume.
It is full of interesting and relevant detail and Dr Brennan has included precisely those

66

pieces of information that all types of gardeners appreciate since they are often
difficult to track down.
Overall, I can thoroughly recommend it and for £4.95 you will have a real bargain
— even more so if you recorded the programmes as welll
P. D. Coker
University of Greenwich

C. Philip (compiler) & A. Lord (editor). The plant finder 1994/95
edition.

1994. Pp 820, [12], xxxii. Headmain for The Royal Horticultural Society, London. ISBN
0-9512161-6-3. £ 11.99.

This brilliant idea has now been acquired by The Royal Horticultural Society, and the
1994/95 edition has a few novel aspects. As before, The plant finder comprises a digest
of plants commercially available in the United Kingdom and Ireland, with the
nurserymen-suppliers encoded. The new features of this RHS edition is that those
plants granted the Society's Award of Garden Merit are signalled by the suffix AGM.

The plant finder has been praised continually since it first appeared in 1987, and
further accolades seem quite superfluous at this stage. Suffice it to say that if you
have spent the last decade marooned on a desert island, this is an essential book for
every keen gardener. As for the society’s interests, Andromeda (2 spp. 13 cvs) and
Bruckenthalia (1 sp. 1 cv) are listed as well as the other genera.

E. C. Nelson
National Botanic Gardens, Dublin

CORRIGENDUM — Yearbook of the Heather Society 1987: 71

Ling means light. In Haven ar 9 (1986) Professor Johan Lange wrote an article
(Lyngen fortzeller) about the linguistic origin of the word ‘lyng’ (spelled that way
in Danish). In Denmark we have several placenames containing ‘lyng’ or
sometimes ‘lung’. The evolution from ’u’ to ’y’, or ’u’ to ’i’, is known from other
words; for example between synger (in English, sing) and sunget (in English,
sung).

‘Lung’ (lyng) in Danish means light (i.e. not heavy), because that organ (an
animal's lung) can float on the water, just as that organ is called the lights (The
Shorter Oxford English Dictionary explains lights, the lungs, as a substantival
use of light, of light weight).

A practical explanation of lung (lyng, ling) as the name for heather is that
(heather) peat is light when dry, in opposition to (grass) turf. In ancient times
both peat and turf was used in house building.

Jens Kjzrbol

67

NURSERYMEN MEMBERS

W = wholesale nursery only
R = retail nursery
MO = nursery willing to supply plants by mail order

ZONE 1 - Scotland

WwW Mr & Mrs T. G. M. CALLAN, Taggs Nursery, Hartwood Mains, WEST
CALDER, WEST LOTHIAN, EH55 8LE

MO D. A. LAMBIE, Speyside Heather Centre, West End, Skye of Curr,
DULNAIN BRIDGE, INVERNESS-SHIRE

MO C. P. PIPER, Pennyacre Nurseries, Crawley House, SPRINGFIELD,
FIFE, KY15 3RU
J. D. W. PROUDFOOT, Almondell Nursery, 34 Lynedoch Road,
METHVEN, PERTHSHIRE, PH1 3PN
G. S. STURROCK, Angus Heathers, 10 Guthrie Street, LETHAM,
ANGUS, DD8 2PS

Ta) Pa =
A re ew

ZONE 2 - Ireland

W R W. CRAWFORD, Dalhanna, 148 Avenue Road, Lurgan,
. CRAIGAVON, CO. ARMAGH, N. IRELAND, BT66 7BJ
R DAISY HILL NURSERIES LTD., Hospital Road, NEWRY, CO. DOWN,
N. IRELAND, BT35 8PN
W L. DORAN, Doran Nurseries, Timahoe, Donadea, NAAS, CO.

KILDARE, REPUBLIC OF IRELAND

Mr & Mrs D. J. GATTRELL, Beechtrees Nursery, 21 Pigeontown

Road, Glenavy, CRUMLIN, CO. ANTRIM, N. IRELAND, BT29 4LJ

Mrs M. HANNA, 162 Lisnevenagh Road, ANTRIM, CO. ANTRIM, N.

IRELAND, BT41 2JJ

Mr & Mrs D. KERINS, Femhurst Garden Nurseries, Killowen,

KENMARE, CO. KERRY, REPUBLIC OF IRELAND

R D. McLAUGHLIN, The Brambles, 51 Glenpark Road, Rosnamuch,
OMAGH, CO. TYRONE, N. IRELAND

R G. WILLIS, Kilternan Nurseries, Old Post Office, KILTERNAN, CO.
DUBLIN, REPUBLIC OF IRELAND

=
Am a

he 3 —- England: Northeast
Mr & Mrs D. R. ANDERSON, Dilston Plains, CORBRIDGE,
| NORTHUMBERLAND, NE45 5RE
Ww R Mr & Mrs W. CROW, Starraig Nead, Scots Gap, MORPETH,
NORTHUMBERLAND, NE61 4EQ

68

ree 4 —- England: Northwest

R MO

= a> 2 32, 2 =
re

Mr & Mrs S. CRABTREE, Eversley Nursery, 10 Granville Avenue,
Hesketh Bank, PRESTON, LANCASHIRE, PR4 6AH

T. FODEN, Foden Nurseries, Rowley House, Kermincham, HOLMES
CHAPEL, CHESHIRE, CW4 8DX

P. J. FOLEY, Holden Clough Nursery, Holden, Bolton by Bowland,
CLITHEROE, LANCASHIRE, BB7 4PF

R. HOLMES & SONS, The Nurseries, Natland, KENDAL, CUMBRIA,
LA9 7QC

T. J. OKELL, Okell’s Nurseries, Duddon Heath, nr TARPORLEY,
CHESHIRE, CW6 OEP

Mr & Mrs R. G. RIMMER, Hinton House, Pygons Hill, Lydiate, nr
LIVERPOOL, MERSEYSIDE, L31 4JF

ZONE 5 - England: Humberside & Yorkshire

Ww R

Mr & Mrs M. P. HARRISON, Asselby Nurseries, Asselby, nr GOOLE,
N. HUMBERSIDE, DN14 7HE

ZONE 6 - England: East Midlands

W R

Ww R MO

Mrs D. ANNABEL, Springwood, 22 Church Drive, RAVENSHEAD,
NOTTINGHAM, NG15 9FF

NEW STREET NURSERY, 47 New Street, BLABY,
LEICESTERSHIRE, LE8 3GT

Mr & Mrs A. SCOTT-BLORE, 7 Cheribough Road, Old Acres,
CASTLE DONINGTON, DERBYSHIRE, DE7 2NR

TWO DALES NURSERIES, Two Dales Farm, Selston Lane,
Annesley, WOODHOUSE, NOTTINGHAMSHIRE NG17 9LA

ies 7 - England: West Midlands

W

R

Sea =

J. L. ALLEN, Green Beech Nursery, Oxleys Road, Wishaw, SUTTON
COLDFIELD, W. MIDLANDS, B76 9PA

G. J. COOKES, Little Froome, 2 Drayton Lane, Fenny Drayton,
NUNEATON, WARWICKSHIRE, CV13 6AZ

Mr & Mrs M. EVERETT, Greenacres Nursery, BRINGSTY,
WORCESTER, WR6 STA,

T. G. VEITCH, Broadlands, Springbrook Lane, EARLSWOOD,
WARWICKSHIRE, B94 5SF

Mr & Mrs R. WARNER, Barncroft Nurseries, Dunwood Lane,
Longsdon, STOKE-ON-TRENT, STAFFORDSHIRE, ST9 9QW

Mrs H. WARREN, Conifers, 10 Outwoods _ Street,
BURTON-ON-TRENT, STAFFORDSHIRE, DE14 2PJ

ZONE 8 - Cymru (Wales)

W R

Mr & Mrs J. L. JONES, Glynwern Nursery, Cilcennin, LAMPETER,
DYFED, SA48 8RJ

69

ZONE 9 - England: East

W

=

R

R

R

MO

MO

MO

MO

Chris BOWERS & SONS, Whispering Trees Nursery,
WIMBOTSHAM, NORFOLK, PE34 8QB

Mr & Mrs B. F. HIPPERSON, Norwich Heather & Conifer Centre,
54a Yarmouth Road, Thorpe, NORWICH, NORFOLK, IP21 4QP
Mr & Mrs H. B. OAKES, The Nurseries, Pulham St Mary, DISS,
NORFOLK, IP21 4QQ

Mrs P. RODWELL, Upminster Lodge Nurseries, Tomkyns Lane,
UPMINSTER, ESSEX, RM14 1TP

Mr & Mrs D. J. SMALL, Denbeigh Heather Nurseries, All Saints
Road, Creeting St Mary, IPSWICH, SUFFOLK, IP6 8PJ

T. WRAY, Bridge Nurseries, Dunwich, SAXMUNDHAM, SUFFOLK,
IP17 3DZ

ZONE 10 - England: North Thames

ZONE 11 - England: Southern

W

R

R

Mr & Mrs R. W. S. BIGGS, Bodiam Nursery, Ockham House,
Bodiam, ROBERTSBRIDGE, EAST SUSSEX, TN32 5RA

Mr & Mrs J. FRANCIS, The Nursery, 37 Stone Lane, WORTHING,
WEST SUSSEX, BN13 2BA

WINDLESHAM COURT NURSERIES, London Road _ (A360),
WINDLESHAM, SURREY

ZONE 12 - England: Southwest

W

W
WwW
W

R

A A A BA

MO

Mr & Mrs C. ANDREWS, Polden Acres Gardens, Broadway,
Edington, BRIDGWATER, SOMERSET, TA7 9HA

Mr & Mrs D. M. EDGE, Forest Edge Nursery, Verwood Road,
Woodlands, WIMBORNE, DORSET, BH21 6LJ

Mr & Mrs A. W. JONES, Otters’ Court Heathers, West Camel,
YEOVIL, SOMERSET, BA22 7QF

Mr & Mrs R. KOERPER, Battle House Gardens, Bromham,
CHIPPENHAM, WILTSHIRE, SN15 2EX

NAKED CROSS NURSERIES, Waterloo Road, Corfe Mullen,
WIMBORNE, DORSET, BH21 3SR

Mr & Mrs H. PRINGLE, 166 Woodlands Road, Ashurst,
SOUTHAMPTON, HAMPSHIRE, SO4 2AP

Mr & Mrs A. J. SELFE, Copperfield, Chatter Alley, Dogmersfield,
BASINGSTOKE, HAMPSHIRE

P. J. SQUIRES, Heatherwood Nurseries, Merley Park Road,
WIMBORNE, DORSET,

ZONE 13 - England: Far West

ZONE 14 - Europe, North America, Australasia

W

H. W. de BRUYN, Insteek 46, 2771 AB BOSKOOP, NETHERLANDS

70

R MO Mrs C. COE, Coehaven Nursery, 150 Rangiuru Road, OTAKI, NEW

ZEALAND
R Mrs R. M. KNIGHT, Heather Acres Inc., 1199 Monte-Elma Road,
ELMA , WA 98541, USA
W K. KRAMER, Edammer Strasse 26, D-26188 EDEWECHT-
SUDDORF, GERMANY
W Mr & Mrs D. A. PHILLIPS, Ericaflora, P.O. Box 206, MONBULK,

VICTORIA 3793, AUSTRALIA
R MO R. SPITZ, CH-1512 CHAVANNES-SUR-MOUDON, SWITZERLAND

R H. WESTERMANN, Baumschulenweg 2, D-3045 BISPINGEN,
GERMANY
ie ae 2fe fe 2 2 2 2
NURSERY CATALOGUES
ARDFEARN PLANT CENTRE MO

Ardfearn Nursery, Bunchrew, Invemess IV3 6RH, Scotland

Andromeda - 3 cultivars.
Fine catalogue with other Ericaceae including Phyllodoce and Cassiope, and hardy
alpines. Priced

BLUE BELL NURSERY MO
Blackfordby, Swadlincote, Derbyshire DE11 8AJ.

Andromeda - more than 1 cultivar; Erica - 1 cultivar
Fascinating catalogue of uncommon shrubs and trees, with several unusual
Andromeda. Not a specialist heather nursery. Priced.

BURNCOOSE & SOUTH DOWN NURSERIES MO
Gwennap, Redruth, Cornwall TR16 6Bu.
Calluna - 15 cultivars; Daboecia - 3 cultivars; Erica - 8 species + 1 hybrid,
more than 30 cultivars.
A general catalogue, priced, with emphasis on tender, southern hemisphere plants;
heathers a small fraction of stock; includes Erica canaliculata, and Daboecia
"Prolegerae" described as salmon (can this really be 'Praegerae’?)!

COEHAVEN GARDEN & NURSERY MO
150 Rangiuru Road, Otaki, New Zealand
Calluna - more than 50 cultivars; Erica - c. 60 species + hybrids; more than
50 cultivars.
A model catalogue with prices and good descriptions, and also mouth-watering for
it contains Cape heaths in quantity. Northerners must envy the opportunities to
grow such splendid plants, and also the New Zealand folk who are so well-served
by this nursery. There's poetry, too! Well-worth sending $3 all the way to Otakil

71

D & M EVERETT THE HEATHER PEOPLE Wholesale
Greenacres Nursery, Bringsty, Worcester WR6 STA.

Calluna, Daboecia, Erica.
A comprehensive and succinctly descriptive catalogue with about 100 cultivars;
priced only for large quantities (100 plants for about £44).

DENBEIGH HEATHERS MO
All Saints Road, Creeting St Mary, Ipswich, Suffolk IP6 8PJ
Bruckenthalia - 2 cultivars; Calluna - 494 cultivars; Daboecia - 49 cultivars:
Erica - 14 species, 6 hybrids, 447 cultivars.
The Chairman’s, so it’s comprehensive! List, trimmed of names of perhaps every
heather still in cultivation (but no Andromeda). Not so ’user friendly’ as other
catalogues because you really need the Handy guide ... beside you for descriptions.
The current list has description of Calluna vulgaris ‘Alexandra’ (protected by plant
breeder’s rights).

DORAN HEATHER NURSERIES Wholesale
Timahoe, Donadea, Naas, County Kildare, Republic of Ireland
Calluna - more than 50 cultivars; Daboecia - 6 cultivars; Erica - 8 species, 3
hybrids, more than 60 cultivars.
Trade catalogue with brief descriptions and 18 colour photographs which are also
issued in 2 leaflets entitled Winter and spring flowering heathers for your garden
and Summer and autumn flowering heathers for your garden.

DUCHY NURSERIES

The Duchy of Cornwall, Penlyne, Cott Road, Lostwithiel, Cornwall PL22 OBW
Daboecia cantabrica - mixed (no cultivars listed); Erica - 4 species, 5 cultivars.
named, also "Summer and Winter flowering heathers in a wide selection".

General catalogue, not priced, including Erica manipuliflora and E. australis

’Castellar Blush’.

GREENWAY GARDENS MO
Churston Gerrers, Brixham, Devon TQ5 OES

Only Erica canaliculata and E. discolor.
A fascinating general catalogue of tender plants, especially South American wild
collected species; no prices. Not a specialist heather nursery.

HEATHER ACRES / HEATHS & HEATHERS MO
PO Box 850, Elma, Washington 98541. USA.

Calluna, Daboecia, Erica, Bruckenthalia, Phyllodoce.
‘A descriptive list of hardy heathers available to North American gardeners’. A
comprehensive catalogue, more a handbook (as indeed it is described), and a useful
vade-mecum. No prices, and all cultivars are not available at all times.

72

McCOY NURSERIES Wholesale
Littletown, Kilmeague, Naas, County Kildare, Ireland.

Erica - more than 40 cultivars
Price list with brief descriptions. Other plants offered are Rhododendron (including
azalea) and a mixture of shrubs, many with oddly printed names!

MACPENNYS HEATHER LIST 1992/93
154 Burley Road, Bransgore, Christchurch, Dorset BH23 8DB.
Calluna - 36 cultivars; Daboecia - 3 cultivars; Erica - 10 spp.,3 hybrids; more
than5O cultivars.
Typed 5 pp catalogue with concise descriptions. A substantial list, and good range,
but a bit behind in names - still calling E. x stuartii by the synonym E. x praegeri.

OTTERS’ COURT HEATHERS MO
Back Street, West Camel, Yeovil, Somerset BA22 7QF.
Erica only - more than 5 spp., 2 hybrids; more than90 cultivars in catalogue;
many more species and cultivars in stock list
Originally issued in 1988 but still current, this concentrates on hardy lime-tolerant
heathers (Erica carnea, E, erigena, E. x darleyensis) with excellent descriptions - an
especially useful catalogue. Supplementary stock list of cultivars of both lime-
tolerant and lime-hating cultivars is available too.

RIDGEWAY HEATHER NURSERY
Mrs N. Cordingley, Plaish, Church Stretton, Shropshire SY6 7HY
Calluna - more than 40 cultivars; Daboecia - 9 cultivars; Erica - 11 species,
more than 1 hybrid, more than 80 cultivars.
Interesting list, but confusing with, for example, Erica umbellata cunningly
concealed under "Erica hybrida". Not priced.

SPEYSIDE HEATHER MO
Skye of Curr, Dulnain Bridge, Inverness-shire, Scotland
Bruckenthalia; Calluna - more than 50 cultivars; Daboecia - 8 cultivars; Erica
- 4 species, 3 hybrids, more than 50 cultivars.
Not so much a catalogue, but a handy booklet - in fact the 4th edition of a
pamphlet entitled Heathers. A guide to designing a heather garden. Illustrated in
colour (tartan included), a commendable, varied booklet, including brief lists of
plants suitable for associating with heathers. Given the stylish production, more
attention should have been paid to proof reading.

NS

Addresses of heather societies

Affiliated societies

Nederlandse Heidervereniging 'Ericultura'
Mevr. A. Kamena
Bavelselaan 306
4834 TJ BREDA

Netherlands

Gesellschaft der Heidefreunde e.V
Tangstedter Landstrafe 276
2000 HAMBURG 62
Germany

North American Heather Society
c/o Pauline Croxton, Secretary
3641 Indian Creek Road
PLACERVILLE CA 95667-8923
USA

Other societies

Northeast Heather Societv
PO Box 101
Highland View
ALSTEAD NH 0362
USA

74

Notes for contributors

The editor of Yearbook of the Heather Society invites members of the Heather Society
and other persons with interests in heaths and heathers to submit articles, notes,
illustrations and photographs for publication in the Yearbook which is issued once
every year.

Articles and notes may be of general interest or may record the results of
horticultural, botanical and historical research. The cultivation of heaths and heathers
(Erica, Calluna, Daboecia and related genera), their conservation, taxonomy,
distribution and history, biographies of individuals and histories of nurseries,
bibliography and iconography are some examples of relevant topics.

ARTICLES & NOTES should be submitted, if possible, as corrected, legible
typescript, typed on one side of the paper, double-spaced with wide margins.
Electronic text on IBM-compatible 3.5 inch microdisk in ASCII format is also
acceptable but hard-copy (double-spaced) should accompany the microdisk. Members
of The Heather Society may send handwritten manuscripts, but please ensure these
are legible; please leave a wide margin on the left-hand side, and write only on one
side of the paper.

ILLUSTRATIONS with accompanying text and captions are also welcome.
High quality pen-and-ink drawings and glossy black-and-white photographic prints
can be considered for inclusion. A limited number of colour photographs will be
selected for use in each Yearbook but only the highest-quality colour transparencies
can be used. Members, artists and photographers wishing to submit illustrations are
advised to consult the editor before sending original artwork or photographs by mail.

The editor reserves the right to obtain independent referees’s opinions about
articles and illustrations submitted for publication.

BOOKS FOR REVIEW. Publishers are invited to send books relevant to the
interests of The Heather Society for review; review copies should be sent direct to the
editor, and not to a reviewer.

SUBMISSION OF ARTICLES & ILLUSTRATIONS
Please direct typescripts to the editor at the address given in this Yearbook —
typescripts may be transmitted by fax, but a copy should also be sent by air mail.
Please do not send articles for the Yearbook to The Administrator.

All material for the 1996 issue of the Yearbook of the
Heather Society must reach the editor not later than
31 October 1995.

Due to the strict printing schedule for the Yearbook, the editor regrets that articles
and illustrations received after that date wili be reserved for publication in 1997.

THE HEATHER SOCIETY

ADMINISTRATOR:
Mrs A. Small: Denbeigh, All Saints Road, Creeting St Mary, Ipswich IP6 8PJ, Suffolk

REGISTRAR:

to 22 November 1994 - Mr D. McClintock: Bracken Hill, Platt, Sevenoaks
TN15 8JH, Kent

from 23 November 1994 - Mr A. Jones: Otter’s Court, Back Street, West Camel, Yeovil
BA22 7QF, Somerset

SLIDE LIBRARIAN:
Miss J. Sharpe: 3 Selby Road, Fulford, York YO] 4RD, North Yorkshire

EDITOR OF BULLETIN:
Mrs D. Everett: Greenacres Nursery, Bringsty WR6 5TA, Worcestershire

COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Finance General Purposes’ Publications Technical

A. Hall Mrs D. H. Jones P. L. Joyner D. J. Small

(chairman) (chairman) (chairman) (chairman)

Mrs D. H. Jones A. Hall R. J. Cleevely R. J. Cleevely

P. L. Joyner Mrs P. B. Lee A. R. Collins A. R. Collins

D. J. T. Mayne D. J. T. Mayne Mrs D. Everett Mrs D. Everett

D. B. Oliver Dr R. Nichols A. W. Jones A. W. Jones
Miss J. Sharpe D. B. Oliver D. H. E. Rope
D. J. Small Miss J. Sharpe
A. J. Stow

Editor of Yearbook

Dr E. Charles Nelson
National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin 9
Ireland

tel: [int +] 353 1 8 374 388 (work)

(int +] 353 1 8 680 595 (home, after 6 pm)
fax: [int +] 353 1 8 360 O80

from UK [int +] is 010

YEARBOOK OF THE HEATHER SOCIETY

1995

CONTENTS

Foreword

Simon Thomton-Wood
Heathers in National Trust gardens
E. Charles Nelson
Heather House, Florence Court, County Fermanagh,
Northern Ireland
Katherine Hearn
Wild heathers on National Trust land

HISTORICAL & BOTANICAL NOTES
The Maginess heathers —- Daphne Maginess
Irish nursery catalogues and heathers - Ruth Brennan
Erica - update on species numbers - E. G. H. Oliver

Graham Stuart Thomas
Heathers in the garden
David Robinson
Cape heaths in eastern Ireland
David Small
Propagation of hardy heathers in the garden
Jean O'Neill & E. Charles Nelson
Introduction of St Dabeoc’s heath
into English gardens, 1763
E. Charles Nelson _

Erica mackaiana Bab. forma multiplicata: a new name

for the multipetalous form of Mackay’s heath

The Heather Society 24th annual conference 1994
Askham Bryan College, Yorkshire
Remembering York in '94 - Dee Daneri
Another view — Ron Cleevely

CULTIVAR AND SPECIES NOTES
Cultivars registered to 31 October 1994
New acquisitions - J. Platt
New species & combinations
Cultivar names new to the Registrar

RECENT PUBLICATIONS & BOOK REVIEWS
NURSERYMEN MEMBERS
NURSERY CATALOGUES

27

33 4

41
47

52
52.
55

55

58
67
70