Calluna vulgaris Garden Girls Silvana - Heather

Calluna vulgaris Garden Girls® 'Silvana' is the first summer heather with button-like flowers that has silver foliage. The Garden Girls callunas are characterised by unopened, unpollinated flower buds, which greatly extend the flowering period while making it resistant to frost and rain. 'Silvana' is distinguished by its beautiful evergreen silver-grey foliage, which bears mauve-coloured flower buds. The plant thus offers a rather cool tone, from the base to the tips of the spikes. It enhances blue and pink flowers and purple or acidic yellow foliage. Plant it in rockeries, border beds, or in a nice pot on a patio, in acidic and well-drained soil or substrate.

'Silvana' belongs to the Ericaceae family. Its ancestor, the common heather, is the only species of the genus Calluna. In its natural habitat, it is the dominant vegetation of barren heathlands in the cold regions of the United Kingdom and Northern Europe. 'Silvana' is an evergreen shrub that forms small, bushy plants with a wide, upright habit, reaching a height of about 60cm (24in) and a width of 50cm (20in) after 5 years of cultivation. Decorative throughout the year thanks to its beautiful evergreen foliage, this cultivar blooms from late September to December. Its flower buds are arranged in upright and flexible spikes. The silver-grey colour of its foliage gives distinction to this variety. Its nectar contains a high sugar content, making this honey-bearing plant invaluable in beekeeping. Heather honey is characterised by its gelatinous texture and dark colour.

'Silvana' is a light and refined plant that thrives in any acidic, moist to dry soil, in full sun or partial shade. It brings elegance to wild areas of the garden as well as to low-maintenance or weekend gardens. Splendid when planted en masse with other species and varieties, it also pairs nicely with dwarf autumn asters and small grasses, in rockeries, on banks, or in informal borders. In an ericaceous soil bed, it can be planted at the base of witch hazels, pieris, or Skimmia japonica. Plant it in pots and containers on a patio or balcony to create autumnal floral compositions with small perennials and bulbs.

Calluna vulgaris can withstand moderate grazing. It represents an important source of food for sheep and deer when snow covers the vegetation. It is capable of regenerating after a fire. In the past, this plant was considered magical and used in white magic rituals; it was attributed protective powers, as in the Breton heaths, where it is said to ward off ghostly spirits. Calluna is also an ingredient of gruit, an aromatic composition used in brewing beer before the use of hops in the Middle Ages. Its flowering tops have been used in herbal medicine for a very long time, as they are reputed to "dissolve stones in the bladder".