Flora of North America species comparison

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Erica lusitanica

Spanish heath, Spanish heather
Habit Plants ± erect, 15–30 cm; twigs of current season green, with short, stiff hairs ca. 0.3 mm, older twigs gray and brown striped, glabrescent.
Leaves

in whorls of (3–)4;

petiole 0.2–0.3 mm;

blade linear-lanceolate, flat to compressed-triangular in cross section, 2.5–4(–7) × 0.2 mm, margins revolute, sparsely prickled, surfaces glabrous.
Inflorescences

terminal panicles, ellipsoid, 10–25 cm.
Pedicels

1–1.5 mm, shortly hairy.
Flowers

calyx lobes (connate ca. 1/3 their lengths), ovate, 1 × 0.7 mm, margins entire, apex subacute, glabrous;

corolla white to pinkish white, broadly campanulate, 4–5 mm, lobes ovate-deltate, 0.5–1 mm, apex broadly rounded;

stamens 10;

filaments 2 mm;

anthers awned, ca. 0.7 mm, awns 2, basal, 2-ciliate, 0.3 mm;

ovary glabrous;

style 2–2.5 mm;

stigma exserted, obconic.
Capsules

1–2 mm, glabrous.
Seeds

ellipsoid, 0.6 × 0.5 mm, finely pitted.

Erica lusitanica
Phenology Flowering late spring–summer.
Habitat Sandy coastal sites
Elevation 0-50 m (0-200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR; sw Europe [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Erica lusitanica is found naturalized in coastal California (Humboldt County south to San Diego County), and in southwestern Oregon.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 493.
Parent taxa Ericaceae > subfam. Ericoideae > Erica
Sibling taxa
E. cinerea, E. tetralix, E. vagans
Name authority Rudolphi: J. Bot. (Schrader) 2: 286. 1800 ,
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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