I'm seeing a lot of confusing stuff on heathers and heaths, which I've never paid attention to, but I think this is a tree version of one or the other. Are these heather leaves? Is there a botanical distinction in the use of the name heather vs heath? When I look up tree heath and tree heather, I get the same photos, and none of them show flowers with quite this conical, not really bulbous shape. Can I get a botanical name for this? Thanks. This is in a private planting on the boulevard outside a house in the Shaughnessy neighbourhood.
Not sure what it is, but it isn't Erica arborea, and maybe not in the family Ericaceae at all. Not absolute, but in general: Heath = Erica spp. (plus some closely related genera like Daboecia) Heather = Calluna vulgaris, but also Bell Heather = Erica cinerea.
Thank you Eric. Now I can make the connection. Nadia even posted the one at UBCBG. I even sort of remember where it is. I guess it's time to go look for that one to be in bloom. Michael, thanks for answering the heath vs heather question.
