About 860 species, native to Africa, Madagascar and Europe,
with 752 species native to southern Africa and a further two species that are
cultivated in the region. The greatest diversity is in the
Western Cape and Eastern Cape.
Classification of species native to southern Africa
The sections below are in many cases artificial and do not
represent the true evolutionary classification of the genus. However, they are a
useful way of splitting up the genus into manageable chunks until a better
classfication has been produced. I am most grateful to Dr E.G.H. (Ted) Oliver
for supplying the checklist of species classified by section.
Glen, H.F. 2002. Cultivated Plants of
Southern Africa. Jacana, Johannesburg.
Oliver, E.G.H. 1993. Studies in the Ericoideae
(Ericaceae). XI. The generic relationship between Erica
and Blaeria. Kew Bulletin 48: 771–780.
Oliver, E.G.H. 1993. Studies in the Ericoideae
(Ericaceae). XII. The placing of the genus Blaeria into
synonymy under Erica; nomenclatural and taxonomic
changes for the southern African region. Bothalia 23: 1–
7.