All about heather


It takes a special kind of plant to thrive in moorland areas, where the weather is often cold, wet and windy.

Heather – an evergreen shrub with twiggy stems – covers our open moorland. Usually lots of heather plants grow together, forming a thick, bushy carpet, sometimes up to half a metre tall. This helps the plant to survive strong winds. Heather also has tiny, narrow leaves shaped like the needles on a Christmas tree, which stop the plant from losing too much water as the winds blow across the moors.

Nectar from heather flowers makes excellent honey, and local beekeepers often bring their hives on to the moors in late-summer when the heather comes into bloom.

Types of heather

Three types of heather grow on the North York Moors.

Close up of ling heatherLing

Ling is the most common type of heather found on the North York Moors. It has very tiny pink flowers and generally flowers in mid-to-late August.

Bell heatherBell

Bell heather has dark pink or purple bell-shaped flowers. It generally flowers first, in late-July.

Cross leaved heathCross-leaved heath

Cross-leaved heath has leaves arranged in crosses of four on its stems. It has pale pink bell-shaped flowers and can often be found in boggy areas.

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