Erica tenella

Erica tenella is an erect shrub growing hairy, pale grey branches to about 45 cm. The specific name, tenella, means slender or flexible and small, probably referring to the growth form of the plant.

The linear leaves grow in whorls of four, ascending to spreading around the stems, the surfaces grooved and keeled at the back. They are short and bright green in the photo.

A brightly pink flowering form of this plant grows abundantly in Fernkloof.

The plant‘s distribution is in the southwest of the Western Cape from around Paarl to Bredasdorp.

The habitat is fynbos slopes. Var. tenella is not considered threatened in habitat early in the twenty first century, while data is insufficient to state the case for var. gracilior (Baker and Oliver, 1967; Bean and Johns, 2005; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).