Erica muscosa (Aiton) E.G.H.Oliv.

Erect sparsely to densely branched shrub mostly up to 0.5 [-2] m tall, single-stemmed reseeder. Branches: a few stout erect main branches continuing vegetative growth with numerous spreading or subspreading flowering secondary and tertiary branches, the teriary branchlets short 1-3 mm long, all pubescent often with longer stout spreading gland-tipped hairs interspersed. Leaves 3-nate, subspreading. occasionally spreading, 1.5-3.0 x 0.3-0.4 mm, lanceolate to oblong, adaxially flattened occasionally rounded, abaxially rounded and narrowly sulcate, margins acute or obtuse, apex obtuse or subacute, glabrous or shortly pubescent, occasionally with long stouter gland-tipped hairs, with a large sessile gland apically, rarely a small gland or none, margins ciliolate and often with short to long gland-tipped hairs; petiole adpressed, 0.2-0.3 mm long, glabrous rarely puberulous, ciliolate. Inflorescence: flowers 3-nate in 1[2] whorls, when 2-whorled then umbel-like, terminal on secondary and tertiary branchlets; pedicel 0.1 (-0.3) mm long, puberulous; bract fully recaulescent as abaxial lobe of calyx; bracteoles 2, fully recaulescent as lateral lobes of calyx. Calyx unequally 4-lobed, 0.4-0.6 x 0.5 mm, obconical, mostly 2/3 as long as corolla, longitudinally ridged opposite the lobes, glabrous or pubescent or puberulous only basally, yellow-green; lobes: abaxial lobe equal to or slightly longer than others, all 1/3[1/2] the whole calyx, triangular to ovate, apex acute or obtuse with or without a large sticky sessile gland, narrowly sulcate 1/2 their length and green tipped, margins ciliolate. Corolla 4-lobed, 0.7-1.0 x 0.7 mm, obconic, hyaline, yellowish green becoming white, glabrous, smooth; lobes erect, ±1/4 the corolla, broad, rounded to truncate, margins erose to denticulate to ciliate. Stamens 4, free; filaments 0.3-0.4 mm long, tapering from apex down, straight, flat, glabrous; anthers manifest to subexserted, soon deciduous, bilobed, obtriangular, basally attached, muticous; thecae erect adpressed, 0.6-1.0 mm long, oblanceolate, glabrous, yellow-brown, with hole in septum between thecae; pore about 1/3 the theca; pollen in tetrads. Ovary 1-locular, 0.3-0.5 x 0.2-0.3 mm, narrowly ellipsoid to narrowly ovoid, apex acute merging with style, glabrous or with scattered short apical hairs, no nectaries; ovule 1, pendulous, placenta apical; style thin, 0.2-0.3 mm long, merging with ovary and stigma, glabrous; stigma manifest to exserted, 0.5 mm broad, broadly funnel-shaped, edges collapsing inwards with age, red. Fruit indehiscent, 0.7-1.0 x 0.3-0.4 mm, usually as long as corolla, ellipsoid with a short beak; pericarp thin papery brittle with no thickening, many crystals present; seed ellipsoid, testa thin sticking to pericarp, cells elongate with slightly thickened deeply undulate to jigsawed anticlinal walls but very thin periclinal walls, numerous small pits. Flowering time: Any time of year as the plants tend to produce flowers continuously.