Erica is a genus of roughly 857 species of flowering plants in the familyEricaceae.[3] The English common names heath and heather are shared by some closely related genera of similar appearance. The genus Calluna was formerly included in Erica – it differs in having even smaller scale-leaves (less than 2–3 millimetres long), and the flower corolla consisting of separate petals. Erica is sometimes referred to as "winter (or spring) heather" to distinguish it from Calluna "summer (or autumn) heather".
^"Erica Tourn. ex L."Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
^Stevens, P.F. (2001 onwards). "Ericaceae genera". Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
^Manning, John; Paterson-Jones, Colin (2007). Field Guide to Fynbos. Struik Publishers, Cape Town. p. 224. ISBN978-1-77007-265-7.