128 



THE HEATH FAMILY. 



plainly seen in the Rhododendron. The latter circumstances are 

 eminently characteristic. At first sight there seems something dis- 

 crepant in bringing the Heaths, the Azaleas, and the Rhododendrons 

 into one family, but no plants are more closely allied, nor is the seem- 

 ing contrast greater than is met with in many other families. 



This extensive and favourite family contains some of the most 

 beautiful plants cherished by gardeners, and contributes not a little, 

 in three or four of its species, to the decoration of our country. The 

 true Heaths or Ericas belong chiefly to the Cape of Good Hope, where 



Fig. 106. 

 Blushing-maiden Heath. 



Fig. 105. 

 Common Heather. 



Fig. 107. 

 Crimson Heath. 



immense tracts are covered with the lovely species that give so much 

 beauty to our green-houses, and in a state of perfection scarcely 

 surpassed by the most carefully-nurtured specimens of the florist. 

 Europe and America, both North and South, contain abundance of 

 the miscellaneous species, though in America there is not a single 

 Erica. The family is met with also on the Himalayahs, where grow 

 some of the most magnificent Rhododendrons in the world. Few 

 species are of economical value. Astringency marks a small number, 

 and some have eatable fruits. 



Fourteen species grow wild in England, and five of them near 

 Manchester. 



