Phylica ericoides L.
heath phylica, ericoid phylica · hardebos (Afr.)
Compact, dark green fynbos shrub covered in small white flower heads in autumn and winter; also a good cut flower.
What’s in the name: Phylica: from the Greek for "leafy"; ericoides: "heath-like", resembling an Erica.
“We can never have enough of Nature.”
— Henry David Thoreau, Walden – Henry David Thoreau, Walden (1854), Project Gutenberg
Available from AVNPlants: see the availability list.
Family
Rhamnaceae
Conservation status
Least Concern, SANBI Red List of South African Plants (assessed as Phylica ericoides L. var. ericoides)
Natural distribution & habitat
Dunes, deep sand and coastal slopes from Saldanha and Paarl to the Cape Peninsula and Port Elizabeth, and into southern tropical Africa.
Size & form
Dense, rounded evergreen shrub usually about 0.6 m tall and wide (up to 1 m with age), with small, closely packed narrow leaves (ericoides means "heath-like").
Flowering
Late summer to winter.
Uses in landscaping
- Waterwise and fynbos gardens, especially on coastal sands
- Drought- and wind-tolerant low shrub
- Cut flowers
Care notes
Sun and sandy, well-drained soil. In winter-rainfall areas plant in March–April so it settles before summer. Seed sown in autumn germinates in about three weeks (catch it before capsules split); cuttings also work.
Find out more
Facts checked against: SANBI PlantZAfrica species page 'Phylica ericoides'; SANBI Red List of South African Plants, Phylica ericoides L. var. ericoides (assessment 2005/06/30).