Erica darleyensis Kramers Rote - Winter Heath

Erica x darleyensis 'Kramer's Rote' is one of the most popular varieties for its vigour and long flowering period, with a bright magenta-red to pink colour. It is a true winter adornment for gardens that are lacking in flowers during this time of year. Its evergreen foliage, dark green and needle-like, turns bronze in response to the cold. This heath is a compact and bushy shrub, hardy and adaptable, that will suit every garden. By combining different varieties with staggered blooming periods, Darley heaths create a patchwork of colours for 6 to 7 months, in the garden or in pots, even in slightly chalky and dry soil.

Erica x darleyensis 'Kramer's Rote' is a German horticultural creation dating back to 1987, one of the most famous cultivars resulting from the cross-breeding between Erica carnea, native to the mountainous areas of southern and central Europe, thriving in chalky soil, and Erica erigena, acidophilous, native to western Europe. This hybrid combines growth and abundant flowering. This small evergreen shrub, with a rounded and spreading habit, will reach a height of about 35 cm (13.8 in) and a width of 45 cm (17.7 in) at maturity, with a rather slow growth. Its lifespan is about 10 to 15 years. 'Kramer's Rote' blooms for a long time, from October to April depending on the climate, with small dark pink urn-shaped flowers with brown stamens. These flowers, measuring 3 mm to 5 mm (0.1 in to 0.2 in) in length, are grouped in clusters ranging from 3 cm to 10 cm (1.2 in to 3.9 in) in length and are scattered along the branches, amidst linear, obtuse leaves measuring 3 mm to 10 mm (0.1 in to 0.4 in) in length. 

Hardy and not demanding in terms of soil type, it is an ideal small shrub for the layout of winter heath beds, in the company of other varieties, notably the white and snowy 'Silberschmelze' variety. Darley heath is also an excellent ground cover, whether alone or combined with creeping dwarf conifers (Juniperus squamata 'Blue Star', Juniperus horizontalis 'Blue Chip', J. repanda), or ground cover plants such as Antennaria dioica 'Rubra', Armeria maritima 'Rubrifolia', or Campanula portenschlagiana for example.