Erica blenna

Erica blenna is an erect woody fynbos shrub endemic to the mountain slopes around Riversdale and Heidelberg. A few urn-shaped, green-tipped, sticky, orange flowers are borne at the ends of the branches from April to November. The name is derived from the Greek word blennos (mucous) which refers to the sticky aspect of the flowers (www.plantzafrica.com).

There are two forms, viz. subsp. blenna and subsp. grandiflora that seem to differ mainly in their size. The first one is smaller and more common, whilst the second is the popular media photo subject that made the plant well-known (www.doornkraal.com).