Not so lucky heather as Scotland's proud plant faces fragile future
Work is underway to protect and preserve more than 600 varieties of heather held in Perth
From purple moors to a sprig of the lucky white stuff, heather has long been gently embedded in Scotland’s heritage.
Now, it has emerged that dozens of varieties of the shurb are under threat given worsening weather and a rash of cheap imports from overseas.
Volunteers, stirred by the fragile future of some of these evergreens, are taking action and working to preserve them for generations to come.
At the National Heather Collection in Perth, GPS is being used to map, record and catalogue all the varieties held at the city’s Riverside Park.
More than 600 varieties of heather, including the winter flowering National Collection of Erica carnea , are being traced to pinpoint their exact location and focus preservation efforts.
Tom Lowdon, retired maths teacher, is one of the volunteers with Beautiful Perth helping with the huge cataloguing project.
He explained: “This is the only collection of Erica carnea in the UK. It was awarded Plant Heritage status in 2022.
“What we are doing here is preserving varieties of heather which are under threat. It’s future proofing a National Collection. This is our heritage.
“Not so very long ago there were 10 different commercial growers of heather in the UK. Now we know of only three.
“So much is imported nowadays. That is so sad because everyone associates heathers with Scotland but, generally, we haven’t protected and preserved endangered varieties.
“We are currently working on a three-to-five-year project here. The important thing is that we will have back-up varieties for the next generation of gardeners and heather enthusiasts to enjoy.
Using GPS to map out varities is a welcome support for the mapping project, which otherwise would have taken volunteers “forever”.
“Ultimately, we want to get the layout online for everyone to follow. That would be a game changer”, Mr Lowdon said.
Coen Wishart, an apprentice with Kilmac, the firm undertaking the GPS work, said: “It’s great to get a chance to put college course lessons into a practical project benefiting the community.
“We are working with the Beautiful Perth volunteers to produce a colourful lay-out of the garden with all the various heather types to help visitors identify what is what.
“It’s been a challenge mapping out with GPS on site, with more than 600 different heathers in 15 locations over 3500 square feet of beds.”
Barbara McDonald has been involved with Beautiful Perth and its predecessor Perth in Bloom for more than 30 years.
She played a key role in securing the National Collection of Erica carnea to Riverside Park.
“I was a member of the Heather Society and they kindly supported the project, which ensures we have colourful beds here year-round,” she said.
“I have always liked heather. It was even in my wedding bouquet.
“I was at Errol Primary School with the late Norrie Robertson, who led the gardening team when Bell’s Scotch Whisky had their headquarters at Cherrybank and it was the original home of the UK National Heather Collection.
“When Bell’s left Perth it was a huge setback but thankfully a combined partnership between Perth and Kinross Council and Beautiful Perth rescued it.
“We have identified hundreds of varieties but it is still a work in progress.
“Our research has revealed that many of the endangered heathers were cultivated in Perthshire. They were hit badly by severe frosts in 2009 and 2010.
“Taking cuttings is quite labour intensive so it’s great to have more, and younger, volunteers helping us out.”
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