big news for Ericaceae enthusiasts

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

This is a development sure to send shockwaves throughout the world of international horticulture:

https://www.heatherworld.org/society-news/ths-is-closed-and-replaced-by-hs/

But seriously, they always had an excellent website that was ahead of its time and I'm glad to see it is still around and actually learned a lot on my visit. Kurt Kramer has been going crazy with his hybridizing activities, and good for him. Would love to get my hands on this one: https://www.heatherworld.org/category/heathers/erica-european/ierica-i-x-itriparentalis-i/ierica-i-x-itriparentalis-i-cultivars/ Generally speaking, I have found the hybrid heaths to have more vigor and strength here on the east coast...since our climate is obviously somewhat dissimilar to their own. The longest lasting rare/unusual/specialist heath in my garden (i.e., not a carnea or tougher carnea hybrid, which are so easy to grow they are practically gas station plants) is E. 'Jacqueline', which is a E. manipuliflora X E. vagans hybrid. OTOH I've had a hard time establishing a couple plain old E. vagans cultivars. Looks like hybrid vigor working its magic as usual. Alas, the Polar Vortex winters did a number on my collection of more exotic ones like Erica X veitchii and E. arborea alpina. There is a curious problem that I think affects the ability of Heaths to fully establish in some gardens on the east coast but I'm still quantifying it and will pontificate on it at some point in the future ;-) Need to carry out some experiments over the next years.

I think they are most common in PNW horticulture so threw this in the NW forum as well. The only nurseries specializing in them anymore, far as I can tell, are up there. The one on Cape Cod closed years ago.

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gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)

5 years ago

" I assume it's either people with money that can afford more specialized nurseries, or they have more specialized tastes in plants."

I find this comment rather startling :-) Heaths and heathers abound in the PNW and it is rare to see an established garden in more urban/suburban areas that doesn't include at least one. They are for sale at every retail nursery in the area and common varieties can be easily found at places like Walmart and the box stores. And they are typically rather inexpensive plants as well. My local nursery typically stocks a dozen or so popular varieties that change throughout the seasons according to bloom time or foliage coloring

David, Kramer's Rote is very popular here as well. Probably one of the most frequently planted cultivars.......I know I use it a lot in my designs :-) A long winter bloom season, great color intensity and a heavy bloomer. A very dependable plant in this area!

And the next time you visit the PNW, be sure to plan a trip to Heaths and Heathers on Harstine Island in the lower reaches of Puget Sound (near Shelton). Arguably one of the largest growers of Callunas and Ericas in the US, a major mail order source and their display garden is considered the national collection of these plants. A great day trip (and a chance to maybe indulge in some fresh oysters as well :-))

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Comments (6)

UpperBayGardener (zone 7)
Original Author
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
'Kramer's Rote' from Highland Heather in Oregon. It has been blooming since mid December. I have seen the flower and flower buds of various E. X darleyensis cultivar survive down to 0F...surely the most freeze resistant flowers in general cultivation. It's a shame these are so unfamiliar to most gardeners in the mid-Atlantic region, at least.
socalnolympia
5 years ago
very interesting. although I am not a Heather fan, I do feel enthusiastically similar about several other species and am interested in rare/obscure hybrids.

I am in the PNW and have noticed heathers in some front yards in an older neighborhood. I assume it's either people with money that can afford more specialized nurseries, or they have more specialized tastes in plants. The climate here remains cool much of the year, yet the winters do not go too much below freezing. There is a short hot dry summer period.
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socalnolympia
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
very interesting. although I am not a Heather fan, I do feel enthusiastically similar about several other species and am interested in rare/obscure hybrids.

I am in the PNW and have noticed heathers in some front yards in an older (more upscale charming) . I assume it's either people with money that can afford more specialized nurseries, or they have more specialized tastes in plants. The climate here remains cool much of the year, yet the winters do not go too much below freezing. There is a short hot dry summer period.
UpperBayGardener (zone 7) thanked socalnolympia
UpperBayGardener (zone 7)
Original Author
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I just got an order from Karla at Heaths and Heathers, who sadly is winding down operations. 😔 As with so many specialist US nurseries that have closed in the past 10 years or so, there's not even a question of whether someone is going to replace them. Even if you look at something that appears to be relatively good shape: conifers for example. You can still get various firs grafted onto Abies firma, but nobody is doing the broad swath of straight species grafts that Don Howse of Porterhowse was doing. I KICK MYSELF for not ordering the whole lot of them when I had the chance. And I bet he would have been happy to try to graft Lawson Cypresses onto C. obtusa, unlike the lame response I recently got from another PNW nursery.
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
2 years ago
" I just got an order from Karla at Heaths and Heathers, who sadly is winding down operations. "

I'm rather distressed to hear this. There is no indication on the website that operations are altering.

There are certainly plenty of growers around so no shortage of your standard heaths and heathers. But if they do close, we could miss a lot of rare or less common varieties that only a specialty nursery would carry. And that seems to be a repeating phenomenon....it is the vendors of rare or collector plants that are rapidly disappearing.