Summer Flowering Heathers

Summer flowering Heathers give a welcome splash of colour over a long season from July through to October, when many plants in the garden are well past their best these plucky little spreading evergreens are at their best.

Our summer flowering Heather collection is drawn from a selection of the very best garden types of Calluna vulgaris, the same species of heather found in the Highlands of Scotland (so it goes without saying, these plants are very hardy!) Summer flowering Heathers go well with many other plants, especially smaller Conifers, Azaleas and Rhododendron plants, Ornamental Grasses and smaller shrubs. These versatile plants not only have flowers in a wide variety of shades but also the benefit of different colours of evergreen foliage too. Being low growing they are perfect for colourful low maintenance ground cover. They also grow well in containers especially with other evergreens such as Ivies, Hebes and Euonymus.

Summer flowering Heathers are supplied as strong young plants in 9cm pots and they will develop quickly with good aftercare to provide a colourful carpet of foliage and flowers for many years to come. They look especially good in larger drifts interspersed with other feature plants. As a guide for ground cover and mass planting 4 plants per metre is adequate if you are patient (although iit will take a number of years for them to grow together), 6 plants per metre will, give faster results or you could plant 9-12 plants per square metre for faster coverage.

Both of our collections of summer flowering heather plants are made up of 5 different varieties (the 5 plant collection is 1 each of 5 varieties and the 25 plant collection is 5 of each variety). We will always choose the best looking varieties at the time of despatch in a good mixture of colours, our collections will normally be chosen from the following varieties although we may occasionally include other first class varieties: (sorry we cannot guarantee a certain variety will be included or excluded but all plants are labelled)

BLAZEAWAY: orange / red, flowers light mauve, COUNTY WICKLOW: double shell pink, DARK STAR: double, intense carmine rose, EASTER BONFIRE: bright red tips in spring , FIREFLY: terracotta, deep crimson, FRED J. CHAPPLE: multi-coloured tips. purple GUINEA GOLD: light gold foliage, HAMMONDII RUBRIFOLIA: bright red tips, purple, ROBERT CHAPMAN:orange/red foliage, purple, SILVER KNIGHT: woolly silver foliage, pink, SILVER QUEEN: silver foliage, mauve flowers, SPRING CREAM: cream tips on bright green foliage, SPRING TORCH: vermilion tips, pink flowers  , TIB: double rosy crimson, TRICOLOR/FOLIA: foliage bronze, red and grey, WHITE LAWN: prostrate green foliage, white, WICKWAR FLAME: gold and orange foliage, pink

How to grow summer flowering Heathers:

Position: Full sun or just a little bit of shade

Foliage: Evergreen, leaves persist all year

Soil and site: Best grown in well drained lime free/neutral soil (ph 7 or less), or in ericaceous compost in containers/raised beds. Incorporate plenty of organice matter when preparing the soil especially if it is heavy.

Flowering time: July-October

Growth rate: slow to moderate

Ultimate height and spread: 40cm high x 60cm wide

Hardiness: Full hardy

Aftercare: Water well when planting and until well established, especially during the first summer. After the flowers have faded give the plants a light trim with shears or secateurs to keep them tight and bushy and encorouge a good number of flowers the following season