Erica gracilis

Erica gracilis, commonly the graceful heath or slender heath, is an erect shrub or shrublet growing to heights from 50 cm to 70 cm. The species forms part of the Orophanes section of the Erica genus according to the classification of Baker and Oliver, of the Spurred Heaths bearing urn-shaped flowers with spurs or horns at the base of their anthers.

The small, oblong to needle-like leaves ascend in spaced whorls of four. Numerous upper branchlets carry flowers. Older, woody stems are soon leafless.

The species distribution is in the Western Cape along the coast east of Swellendam and inland in the Little Karoo east of Ladismith to the Eastern Cape as far as the southern slopes of the Langkloof and Humansdorp.

The habitat is fynbos slopes and flats along the south coast. The habitat population is deemed of least concern early in the twenty first century (Manning and Helme, 2024; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).