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Vegetation
Tree Heath (Erica Arborea)
Tree heath is a plant species that usually inhabits the Mediterranean region, the Canary Islands, Madeira, North and East Africa, Asia Minor and the Caucasus. It is one of the most common trees in the Canary Islands and grows on all the islands of the archipelago, although until recently it was thought to have disappeared from Fuerteventura and Lanzarote.
Although this species of small shrub or tree usually measures between half a metre and two metres in height, in the Canary Islands specimens of up to 15 metres have been found. It prefers acid substrates and fairly deep, cool and moderately humid soils. It is also a great coloniser of degraded laurisilva soils and can grow in the undergrowth of mixed pine forests. It is mainly distributed between 500 and 1200 metres high, although isolated specimens or small groups can sometimes be found at very low altitudes (300-400 metres).
Evergreen and greenish in colour, tree heath has a characteristic brownish bark, although its most striking feature is undoubtedly its white or pinkish flowers, which grow in small clusters forming curious bell shapes. Its wood is prized due to its colour and has been commonly used by cabinet makers and wood turners to make small carvings and even smoking pipes.
Although many use it as an ornamental plant, its firewood is also an excellent fuel and one of the best for making charcoal. Even when the branches are still fresh, it can be used to feed livestock or as bedding for animals. Finally, it can be used medicinally as an anti-inflammatory, which is very effective against insect bites.
Other products derived from tree heath include heath honey, which is highly prized due to its acidic and aromatic taste, and a highly nutritious substrate for the cultivation of garden plants called 'heath soil', which forms over years under the soil of the shady heaths.