[Illustration: _ONE OF THE BEST OF ALL HEATHS (Erica carnea)._]
_E. mediterranea._--Of all the taller Heaths this is the one, I think, that deserves to be most freely planted in districts no warmer than the London one. The three preceding species, so beautiful when seen at their best, are more comfortable in the southern and western counties. Of sturdier constitution, _E. mediterranea_ may be planted in large quantities with a view to producing broad effects. At Kew a group 70 feet across, planted three or four years ago, already makes a striking mass of purple each spring. The habit of remaining for a long time in full beauty, which is so marked a characteristic of the Heaths, is possessed to the full extent by this species. It is beautiful from March to May, and is all the more appreciated because the majority of the trees and shrubs that bloom at this season have yellow, pink, or white flowers. In the typical _E. mediterranea_ the flowers are bright rosy red, but there is a charming white-flowered variety (_alba_), another with bluish foliage (_glauca_), and a dwarf one (_nana_). The flowers appear near the ends of the shoots in the axils of the leaves, and are pitcher-shaped. The name _mediterranea_ is misleading, for according to Moggridge, the Mediterranean botanist, it is not a native of that region at all; it is rather of Biscayan origin, and is found in Western France and Spain.
On the boggy heaths of Galway and Mayo a form of this species is found; it is known as _E. mediterranea var. hibernica_, and grows 2 to 5 feet high. The typical _E. mediterranea_ was represented in the Syon gardens seventy years ago by a specimen 10 feet high. Do any such noble examples remain in this country now? _E. mediterranea hybrida_ has been already alluded to.
_E. stricta._--Although not so strikingly beautiful as the Heaths previously mentioned, _E. stricta_ is the hardiest of all the taller species. In inclement districts, where a tall Heath is desired, it may be recommended; it grows from 5 to 6 feet high, and is of erect and sturdy growth, with leaves borne in whorls four to six together; they are deep green, and a large mass of plants with their erect plumose branches produces a somewhat unusual effect. _E. stricta_, like so many Heaths, has a long flowering season; it begins to bloom in June, is at its best in July, but three months later flowers may still be gathered. The flowers are pale purple, and produced in terminal clusters. It has been in cultivation since 1765, and is a native of South-Western Europe; it is occasionally labelled _E. ramulosa_.