Heather in the garden and in pots: planting and care

When summer beds fade, heather is just coming into colour: pink, lilac, white and purple spikes last from late summer until the frosts. It is an easy little shrub with one strict requirement — acid soil. Here is how heather differs from heath, where to plant it and how to care for it in the garden and in pots.

Plants for the garden and balcony are in our potted plants section.

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What heather is

Common heather (Calluna vulgaris) is an evergreen subshrub 20–60 cm tall from the heath family. In the wild it grows on poor sandy soils, in pine forests and on moorland; in Ukraine it is found mainly in Polissia. Heather is a good nectar plant, and in Scottish folk tradition white heather is a sign of good luck.

Heather is often confused with heath (Erica). Winter heath (Erica carnea) flowers in winter and early spring, so the two are easy to combine for colour almost all year round.

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Where to plant heather

• Light. Sun or light shade; in deep shade heather gets leggy and flowers poorly.
• Soil. Acid (pH 4.5–5.5), light and free-draining. Mix ordinary garden soil with acid peat, sand and pine needle litter.
• Water. Standing water is fatal, but heather also dislikes dry roots.
• Companions. Conifers, rhododendrons, blueberries and low grasses share its soil needs.

A heather garden pairs well with conifers — see Conifers for the garden.

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Planting and care

• Plant in spring or early autumn, 30–40 cm apart, in groups of 5–10 of one cultivar for a solid carpet.
• Mulch with bark or pine needles to keep moisture in and the soil acid.
• Water with rainwater or soft water; hard water gradually makes the soil alkaline.
• Feed in spring with an ericaceous or rhododendron fertiliser; avoid manure and wood ash.
• Prune in spring after the frosts, trimming off the old flower spikes without cutting into old bare wood, which rarely resprouts.
• In winters with little snow, cover young plants with conifer branches against drying winds and spring sun.

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Heather in pots

In autumn garden centres are full of potted heather, often bud-bloomers: their buds never open, so the colour lasts into winter. They brighten balconies, porches and autumn arrangements with pumpkins and grasses.

• Keep the pot outdoors or on a cool balcony: in a warm flat heather dries out and drops its leaves.
• Never let the root ball dry out — potted heather rarely recovers.
• In spring you can plant it out in acid soil.

More autumn jobs in Autumn garden care.

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FAQ

Why did my heather dry out?

Usually a dried-out root ball, alkaline soil or hard water, waterlogging or winter desiccation. Shop plants often sit in peat that is hard to re-wet once dry — soak the pot in water for 15–20 minutes.

When does heather flower?

Most cultivars flower from August to October. Bud-bloomers keep their colour into winter, and winter heath flowers from winter into spring.

Can heather be kept indoors?

Not as a permanent houseplant: it needs cool conditions, light and a winter rest. Indoors it works only briefly as a seasonal decoration.

Author: Maria Svitlovir

Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.

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