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Plant Family Collection: Heath Family
Members of the heath family, typically shrubs and occasionally trees or herbs, show considerable advancement beyond more primitive flowering plants such as magnolias.
As flowering plants evolved, they exhibited flowers with fewer parts. Formerly free petals became fused or partially joined, and flowers of a number of families became asymmetrical. In the heaths, petals are fused almost to the tip, forming a tubular, trumpet-shaped bloom, but the flower has remained symmetrical.
Heaths also have a peculiar way of shedding pollen: the anther, the sac that contains the pollen, opens through pores or slender tubes at its tip (in most other species, the anther splits open to release the pollen). The heaths are generally closely associated with root fungi called mycorrhizae, and are usually found in acidic soils.
The Heath Family area is found at the southern tip of the Plant Family Collection, which is located almost at the southern terminus of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, opposite the Children's Garden. Members of the Heath Family, or Ericaceae, displayed here include heaths, heathers, rhododendrons, azaleas, and mountain laurels.
Map of the Garden
The Plant Family Collection is indicated by the orange box. Click on the map to visit other locations in the Garden, or click here to view a larger map.
