Many of our showiest garden shrubs, such as rhododendrons and camellias, need acid soil to thrive. If your garden doesn’t have it, don’t despair as you can grow these plants in containers using ericaceous compost.
Erica
Heather
Shrub
Hardy
White to pink to purple
Dark green
15cm to 6m x 40cm to 1.5m (6in to 20ft x 15in to 4.9ft)
Heathers come in all sizes but the low-growing spreading types are most commonly grown. They produce masses of tiny, bell-shaped flowers which appear among the needle-like leaves. Some varieties will tolerate chalky soils.