6c)8 E R I 
tomentofe, corollas Cylindric, fcattered, T*lus is alfo a 
native of the Cape : it is known only by a fingle fpecimen 
in the Linntsan Herbarium. 
73. Erica Bruniades: flowers fcattered, corollas covered 
by a woolly calyx, (lyle (landing out. Native of the Cape, 
Thunberg makes this to be the fame with the capitata. 
74. Erica imbricata, or imbricate heath : corollas bell, 
fliaped, covered with the imbricate calyx, (lyle (landing 
out. Native of the Cape. 
75. Erica umbellata, or umbelled heath: leaves ace- 
rofe, corollas bell-fhaped, (lyle (landing out. This little 
(limb has the habit of common heath. Native of Portugal. 
Leaves in fours or more; 76. Erica purpurafcens, or 
jSurple heath : flowers fcattered, corollas bell-fhaped, 
(lyle (landing out. Native of the fouth of Europe. 
77. Erica vagans, or wandering heath : flowers foli- 
ttiry, corollas bell-fhaped, (lyle (landing out. Stem like 
fhat of empetrum, (hrubby, fomewhat rugged ; the ex¬ 
treme branches whitilh and divaricating. Leaves in fours, 
feldom in fives, linear, bluntifh, fometimes fmoothifh, 
fometimes a little rugged, beneath convex and chan¬ 
nelled, (hortifh, crowded. Native of Africa, and alfo of 
the neighbourhood of Thouloufe. See No. 80, which is 
fuppofed to be the fame. 
78. Erica herbacea, or early-flowering dwarf heath : 
flowers directed all one way, corollas oblong, (lyle (land¬ 
ing out. This is a fmall ihrub, from a foot to eighteen 
inches in height, decumbent at the bottom, then upright, 
branched, flexible. Flowers at the tops of the branch- 
lets, on (hort peduncles, alternate, among the leaves ; 
they come out in autumn, continue clofed during winter, 
and are then green; in May the year following the flow¬ 
ers are unfolded, the anther® which were inclofed are pro¬ 
truded, the calyx and corolla opening are both changed 
into a pale purple or flefh-colour. Hence many authors, 
among whom is Linnaeus, have made two fpecies of this. 
Native of Auflria, Swifterland, and Silefia. Introduced 
in 1763, by the earl of Coventry. 
79. Erica multiflora, or many-flowered heath : leaves 
in fives, flowers fcattered, corollas cylindric, (lyle (land¬ 
ing out. Stem the height of a man. Leaves in fours or 
fives, foreading, obtufe, gibbous at the bafe. Flowers 
purplifh. Native of the fouth of Europe. It flowers 
from June to November. Linnaeus lets this down as a 
native of England: but our plant, which he fuppofed to 
be the fame with his multiflora, is the next fpecies. 
80. Erica didyma, of double-ant'nered heath : leaves 
in fives, peduncles fcattered, longer than the flower, co¬ 
rollas beil-(haped, anther® twin, (lyle Handing out. Stems 
Swifted, trailing. Branches between fcored and angular, 
light reddifli brown, the more (lender (hoots a(h-coloured, 
all lateral, to feven or more riling from the fame point in 
the manner of an umbel, in fome Hates of its growth giv¬ 
ing it much the appearance of euphorbia cyparillias ; when 
beginning to flower, gradually tapering towards the end. 
Leaves linear, fomewhat like thole of fir, bowed fideways, 
fmooth, but not gloffy, fomewhat pointed, when magni¬ 
fied appearing to have diflant ferratures on the edge, 
which is bent in, upper furface green, (lightly elevated 
in the middle, under whitilh, convex, with a fmooth fur¬ 
row running along it, longer, and fometimes thrice as 
long as the corolla, and crowded fo clofe as to conceal 
the younger (hoots. Seeds reddifli brown. Found on 
heaths, as on Goonhilly-downs, going from Helfton to the 
Lizard-point, in Cornwall. It flowers from June to Au- 
guft. The fame with E. vagans, No. 77. 
81. Erica Mediterranea, or Mediterranean heath : leaves 
fpreading, flowers fcattered, corollas ovate, (lyle (landing 
out. Refembles E. multiflora, but the corolla is abfo- 
lutely ovate ; the branches angular and white. Native 
of the fouth of Europe; introduced about 1765 by Mr. 
Jofhua Brooks ; it flowers from March to May. 
82. Erica grandiflora, or great-flowered heath : leaves 
in fixes or thereabouts, acerofe, fmooth ; flowers axillary, 
jpeduncled; corollas cylindric, fubincurved, fmooth; (lyle 
E R I 
elongated. This refembles E. curviflora, but the leave® 
are longer. Obferved at the Cape of Good Hope by 
Thunberg; introduced here in 1775 by Maflon ; it flow¬ 
ers from May to July. 
Place uncertain. 83. Erica tetragona, or four-fided 
heath : leaves in threes, flowers in racemes, pointing all 
the fame way ; calyx linear, corolla four-cornered, ob¬ 
long, (lyle included. Flowers yellow, like thofe of E. 
lutea, but longer. Native of the Cape. 
84. Erica pyramidalis, or pyramidal heath : anther® 
awnlefs, included ; corollas funnel-lhaped, in fours; (lyle 
a little protruded ; leaves in fours, pubefeent. Intro¬ 
duced from the Cape by Maflon in 1787. 
Propagation and Culture. Common heath, which over¬ 
runs immenfe trafls, efpecially in the elevated parts of 
northern countries, can be extirpated only effeflually by 
paring and burning. In fome lands, deep and crofs plough- 
ings, getting up roots with heavy harrows, burning the 
whole, and fpreading the afhes, may be fufiicient. Dr. 
Anderfon affirms, that wherever heath abounds, there is 
generated, by the rotting of the plant, a peculiar black 
earth, that is not only of itfelf (lerile, but has a powerful 
tendency to make any other foil unfertile ; fo that in im¬ 
proving heathy grounds, the top foil (hould be buried by 
trenching or deep ploughing. 
Notwithftanding the commonnefs of our Briti(h heaths, 
they deferve a place in fmall quarters of humble flower¬ 
ing (hrubs, where, by the beauty and long continuance of 
their flowers, together with the diverfity of their leaves, 
they make an agreeable variety. They may be taken up, 
with a ball of earth to their roots, from the natural places 
of their growth, in autumn. The foil fhould not be 
dunged, and the lefs the ground is dug, the better they 
will thrive, for they commonly (hoot their roots near the 
furface. They may alfo be propagated by feeds, but this 
is a tedious method. 
12, 16, 17, 38, 52, 75-79, 81. Thefe, which are na¬ 
tives of the fouthern countries of Europe, will bear the 
open air in England in a dry foil and a warm fituation. 
They may be increafed and treated in the fame manner 
with our Britifli heaths, and may alfo be propagated by 
layers and cuttings. 
All the reft of this numerous and beautiful genus being 
natives of the Cape of Good Hope, or the more interior 
parts of Africa leading to that famous promontory, muft 
be preferved in the dry (love, greenhoufe, or glafs cafe. 
Thefe may be increafed either from cuttings or from 
layers. There are not many of the fpecies but what may 
be increafed in the firft way, provided good young (hoots 
can be got for cuttings; efpecially if they are put under 
bell-glalles, and the pots are fet where they can be (haded, 
and have a moderate heat. Thefe plants (hould have a 
light and rather poor foil to grow in; a compofition of 
bog earth and light loam will fuit them well. Mr. James 
Donn, curator of the botanic garden at Cambridge, col- 
lefled upwards of fixty of thefe Cape heaths, which he 
cultivated in 1795 ; though he was appointed to his office 
only at Michaelmas 1794. See Alyssum, Andromeda, 
Blceria, Brunia, Bryonia, Diosma, Empetrum, 
Hottonia, Passerina, Pen^ea, Phyllica, Fucus, 
and Frankenia. 
ERIC/EFOR'MIS, f. in botany. See Diosma and 
Hudsonia. 
ERICEY'RA, a town of Portugal, in the province of 
Eftremadura, on the fea co.tft : twenty miles north-weft 
of Lifbon. 
ERICOI'DESjyi in botany. See Elatine. 
ERICOI'LA,yi in botany. See Gentiana. 
ERICHTHO'NIUS, the fourth king of Athens, fabled 
to have fprung from the feed of Vulcan which fell upon 
the ground when that god attempted to ofFer violence 
to Minerva. He was very deformed, and had the tails of 
ferpents inftead of legs. Minerva placed him in a bafket, 
which (he gave to the daughters of Cecrops, with drift 
injunctions not to examine its contents. Aglaurus, one 
