Calluna vulgaris

Scotch Heather

Ericaceae

Overview

Calluna vulgaris is a versatile evergreen subshrub that brings exceptional textural and seasonal interest to Pacific Northwest gardens with its fine-textured foliage and extended bloom period. This adaptable plant thrives in the region's typically acidic soils and cool, moist climate, creating sweeping drifts of color from late summer through fall when many other perennials have finished flowering. The diverse array of cultivars available offers remarkable variation in flower color, foliage characteristics, and growth habits, allowing for sophisticated planting combinations throughout the seasons. Particularly valuable in coastal Pacific Northwest gardens where its tolerance for salt spray, wind, and sandy soils makes it an excellent choice for challenging oceanfront landscapes from British Columbia to northern California, while its modest water requirements once established contribute to sustainable landscape practices across the region.

How to Identify

Calluna vulgaris can be identified by its diminutive, overlapping, scale-like leaves that clasp the stems rather than extending outward as in true heaths (Erica species). These tiny leaves create a distinctive fine-textured appearance, with each leaf measuring only about 1/8 inch long and arranged in opposite pairs forming four distinct rows along the stem. The stems are woody and become increasingly gnarled with age. Flowers are borne in dense, upright racemes along the upper portions of the stems, with each tiny individual flower consisting of four sepals and a smaller corolla nestled within. Unlike true heaths which typically have urn-shaped flowers, heather blossoms appear more open and star-like. The plant forms a low, spreading mound with multiple vertical flowering stems rising from the base.