Plants in the Hortus
Many of the plants described here were listed in the catalogues of plants published by Sir William Macarthur in 1843, 1845, 1850 and 1857 and in an unpublished catalogue dated 1861. A large number of additional plants were identified from correspondence, gardening notebooks and other documents surviving in the archives. The Hortus attempts to describe all the plants grown in the gardens at Camden Park and those grown in horticultural enterprises such as orchards and vineyards and includes plants grown outside the gardens in the park-like environs of the Camden Park estate. The Hortus plants served a wide range of purposes in the 19th century household; as ornament, living fences, fibre, dyestuffs, medicines, food and drink from the garden, orchard and vineyard and many others.
Epiphyllum ackermanii Haw.
Frost tender, erect, perennial cactus with strap-like, flat, thin, scalloped, fleshy stems, sometimes 3-ribbed, freely branching from the base, and crimson or orange-red flowers with pale yellow-green tubes, to 12cm long, in summer. To 45cm. [RHSE, Hortus].
Epiphyllum oxypetalum Haw.
Epiphytic cactus with flattened, much-branched stems, evening flowering, the flowers fragrant, white, reddish on the outside. [RHSD, Hortus].
Epiphyllum phyllanthus (L.) Haw.
Frost tender, semi-erect, bushy, semi-epiphytic cactus with cylindrical stems, 3-4-angled when old, stiff, leaf-like, scalloped branches with purple-shaded margins, and nocturnal, funnel-shaped, glistening white or pale yellow flowers, to 30cm long, with green- or red-tinged outer tepals and green tubes, in spring and summer. To 2m. [RHSE, Hortus].
Epiphyllum x jenkinsonii Hort.
A hybrid between Heliocereus speciosus x Epiphyllum speciosum (Don) or Nopalxochia phyllanthoides. It has large, deep scarlet flowers, to 10cm across, followed by purple fruits. To 1m. [Hortus, Don].
Eranthemum species unidentified
Probably an unidentified Eranthemum species, but see Pseuderanthemum asperum Radlk. for information on a related plant.
Ercilla volubilis Juss.
Frost hardy, vigorous, freely-branching climber with ovate-heart-shaped leaves, with a pattern of pale veins, and many green or purple flower spikes, mainly in spring, followed by deep purple berries. To 10m. [RHSE, Hortus].
Erica abietina L. ssp. abietina
There is no record of a plant called Erica abietina in the Camden Park historical record. Erica abietina L. ssp. abietina is included in the Hortus as the plant grown by Macarthur under the name Erica coccinea may be Erica abietina. See Horticultural & Botanical History below and Erica coccinea L. for further explanation.
Erica abietina is a sturdy, dense shrub with a single, freely-branching woody stem, the mid to upper branches clothed with a dense arrangement of green, needle-like leaves. The flowers are clustered near the ends of the branches and are bright red, tubular, curved and flared at the mouth. Flowers are produced from midsummer to midwinter but appear occasionally throughout the year. To 1.5m. [http://www.plantzafrica.com].
Erica arborea L.
Tall shrub or small tree, leaves in whorls of 3, fragrant, bell-shaped, grayish-white flowers are borne in profuse panicles towards the end of lateral branches in spring. To 6m. [RHSD, Hortus, Hilliers’].
Erica baccans L.
Half-hardy, robust, erect, many-branched heath with axillary whorls, to 2.5cm long, each with 4 spherical, deep pink flowers, 6mm across, with keeled, dark pink sepals, in winter and spring. To 2.5m. [RHSE, Hortus].
Erica bauera Andr.
Half-hardy, open, sparsely-branched shrub with blue-green leaves in whorls of 4 and terminal, pendant, compact pseudo-spikes of small white or pink flowers all year round. To 30cm. [RHSD, Hortus].
Erica canaliculata Andr.
Half-hardy erect heath with panicle-like whorls, to 30cm long, of cup-shaped, pale pink to white flowers, 4mm across, in winter and spring. To 2m or more. [RHSE, Hilliers'].
Erica cerinthoides L.
Half-hardy, erect heath with umbels, to 3.5cm across, of tubular, red, pink or white flowers, mainly in winter and spring. To 1.5m. [RHSE, Hortus].
Erica coccinea L.
A rigid, stoutly branched, bushy shrub, the hanging tubular flowers produced in threes on the ends of short side branches. The flower-bearing side branches are closely packed towards the tips of the upright main branches, giving the effect of a spike-like inflorescence. The anthers are yellow-brown and protrude far from the flower tube. This is a variable species throughout its range. To 1.2m. [http://www.plantzafrica.com].
Erica imbricata L.
See Botanical and Horticultural History
Erica mammosa L.
Half-hardy, erect heath with leaves in whorls of 4 and clustered, pendant, terminal racemes, to 7cm long, of tubular, dark wine-red, orange, pink, green or white flowers, to 2.5cm long, summer to winter. To 1.5m. [RHSE].
