Erica humidicola E.G.H.Oliv.

Shrub erect, 0.5-1.0 m tall, bushy in open areas or long and lanky in thicker, older vegetation, single-stemmed reseeder. Branches: a few main erect ones, 100-300 mm long, mostly with continuous apical growth, numerous secondary branches, 10-20 mm long at every node, few, very short, 1-4 mm long tertiary branchlets, internodes on main branches 8-10 mm long, all branches with short spreading hairs. Leaves 4-nate, ± 3.5 x 0.6 mm subspreading, adaxially flattened, abaxially rounded, hirsute all over, sulcus narrow and closed at base; petiole 0.6 mm long, adpressed, glabrous, ciliate. Inflorescence: flowers 1-3 at ends of short lateral secondary and tertiary branchlets crowded along main branches into loose spike-like synflorescence; pedicel 2 mm long, pubescent, red; bract partially recaulescent about quarter to third way up pedicel, ± 0.6 x 0.3 mm, ovate-triangular, subacute, puberulous, ciliate, with small subapical sulcus, pink; bracteoles 2, positioned slightly higher than bract, slightly longer than bract, otherwise similar. Calyx 4-partite, segments ± 1.5 x 1.2 mm, broadly ovate-elliptic, acute, adpressed to corolla, shortly and narrowly sulcate up to quarter their length, finely puberulous, shortly ciliate, reddish pink. Corolla 4-lobed, ± 4.5 x 3.0 mm, broadly campanulate, very finely puberulous, dark pink; lobes ± 2.0 x 1.5 mm, broadly rounded, entire, subspreading to spreading, devoid of hairs towards margins abaxially. Stamens 8, included or just manifest, free; filaments ± 2.5 mm long, linear-oblong, straight or with slight S-bend, glabrous, white; anthers bifid, dorsally attached near base, erect, sub-quadrate in adaxial view, appendiculate, spurs ± 0.5 mm long, pendulous, slightly decurrent along apex of filament, thick, entire, sparsely papillate, golden; thecae dark brown, slightly parted but erect, ± 0.8 x 0.4 mm, oblong-elliptic with slight nose in lateral outline, obtuse, papillate-strigose on adaxial margins; pore about half length of theca; pollen in tetrads. Ovary 4-locular, ± 1.3 x 1.1 mm, broadly obovoid, emarginate, with small basal nectaries, hirsute; ovules 4 or 5 per locule, spreading from placenta centrally placed on axis; style exserted, 3 mm long, cylindrical, glabrous; stigma capitellate. Fruit a dehiscent capsule, ± 4.5 x 4.0 mm, valves free almost to base but not spreading much, septa about 80% on valves and 20% on columella. Seeds ± 0.5 x 0.4 mm, subspheroid-ellipsoid, shallowly reticulate, golden brown; cells subequally subquadrate, ± 45 x 55 µm, with slightly undulate anticlinal walls and small pores in inner periclinal walls.