Erica is a genus of roughly 857 species of flowering plants in the family Ericaceae. 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, and the flower corolla consisting of separate petals. Erica is sometimes referred to as "winter heather" to distinguish it from Calluna "summer heather".
