# Golden Heather (Hudsonia ericoides) > A low evergreen mat of needle-fine leaves that turns bright yellow with flowers in late spring, on the sand barrens of the Northeast. Also called pine barren goldenheather, pine-barren false heather. Category: Native Shrubs. Grown from seed by Blue Whale Trees. Web version: https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/golden-heather/ ![Golden heather (Hudsonia ericoides) mat covered in small yellow flowers on bare sand](https://bluewhaletrees.com/img/plants/golden-heather-h1610-800.jpg) *Photo: Doug McGrady, CC BY 2.0 ยท [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AHudsonia_ericoides_%28pine-barren_false_heather%29%2C_Plymouth%2C_MA_%2842246291505%29.jpg)* ## Facts - Type: Shrub - Mature height: 1 to 2 ft - USDA hardiness zones: 5 to 8 - Grows wild in: Sandy barrens, the coast, rocky ground and dry uplands - Native range: 11 states, north to Maine and south and west to South Carolina (Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Vermont) - Sun: Full - Soil moisture: Dry - Growth rate: Slow - Traits: Rare, Evergreen, Showy flowers, Drought tolerant - Sold as: Saplings, Seed Heights and zones are typical ranges for the species in cultivation; local conditions and seed source shift them. ## Availability Not yet priced online. Ask at captain@bluewhaletrees.com or leave an email on the web page to be told when it is listed. ## Notes Golden heather is a low, mat-forming evergreen of the rockrose family, with needle-like leaves that give it the look of a heath. It grows on open sand from Newfoundland south to Maryland, with one outlying population in South Carolina. Connecticut, New Hampshire and Maryland list it as endangered, and Rhode Island lists it as threatened. It needs open ground, where fire or other disturbance keeps taller plants away. It has always been hard to grow in gardens. Give it full sun on dry, poor, sandy ground, where nothing taller can shade it. ## Size, growth and what to expect No source rates its growth. Its close relative woolly beach heather is called slow-growing, so our growth estimator treats it as slow. It makes a dense mat 6 inches to a foot tall that can spread 3 feet across, from a single taproot up to 6 inches deep. Bright yellow flowers about a third of an inch across open from May into July, each on its own slender stalk near the branch tips. The small capsules ripen in August and September. Bees visit the flowers. The tiny seed can lie in the soil for years, and a hot fire that clears the ground brings up new plants. The old plants do not sprout back after a fire. It grows wild mostly near the coast, from Newfoundland and Nova Scotia south to Maryland, with one outlying population in South Carolina. Its home is open sand in pine barrens, sandplain grasslands, dunes, upper beaches and roadsides. It also grows on granite ledges. ## How to grow Golden Heather Golden heather needs full sun, and taller plants that shade it crowd it out. It wants a dry, acid, sandy soil low in nutrients, like the pine barrens and sandplains where it grows wild. Set plants 2 feet apart and keep them 2 feet from a wall. At its size it can go within 15 feet of overhead wires. Saplings ship bare-root or potted. Plant them in spring or fall in a hole wider than the roots and no deeper, and put the sandy soil back in. Golden heather is hard to raise from seed. In one trial, seed stored cold for two years came up poorly, whether it was kept dry or damp. For its relative woolly beach heather, 60 days of cold, damp storage seems to work best so far. Water it through dry spells until it is established. After that it is adapted to drought. Each flower carries both male and female parts, and bees visit the flowers. Keep taller plants from shading it, and do not step on it, since trampling harms it. ## Sources - [Fire Effects Information System (Gucker 2005): Hudsonia ericoides, pine barren goldheather](https://research.fs.usda.gov/feis/species-reviews/huderi) - [Flora of North America, vol. 6: Hudsonia ericoides](http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=220006551) - [Flora of North America, vol. 6: Hudsonia](http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=115833) - [Go Botany, Native Plant Trust: Hudsonia ericoides](https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/hudsonia/ericoides/) - [Trees and Shrubs Online (International Dendrology Society), from Bean: Hudsonia ericoides](https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/hudsonia/hudsonia-ericoides/) - [Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center: Hudsonia ericoides](https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=HUER) - [NatureServe Explorer: Hudsonia ericoides](https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.147957/Hudsonia_ericoides) - [Heim, Nagase, Lundholm and Wrathall 2018: Germination ecology of native plant species for use in restoration and the urban landscape in Nova Scotia, Canada, Native Plants Journal 19(3): 201-215](http://npj.uwpress.org/content/19/3/201.full.pdf) - [Native Plant Network: Skaradek 2001, propagation protocol for Hudsonia tomentosa seeds, USDA NRCS Cape May Plant Materials Center](https://npn.rngr.net/renderNPNProtocolDetails?selectedProtocolIds=cistaceae-hudsonia-1307) - [Native Plant Trust Plant Finder: Hudsonia tomentosa](https://plantfinder.nativeplanttrust.org/plant/Hudsonia-tomentosa) - [North Carolina Natural Heritage Program, rare plant profile: Mountain golden-heather, Hudsonia montana](https://herbarium.ncsu.edu/rare/images/Hudsonia_montana_NHP.pdf) - [Pinelands Alliance: Hudsonia ericoides](https://pinelandsalliance.org/plant/hudsonia-ericoides/) - [Connecticut DEEP: Endangered, Threatened and Special Concern Plants, effective August 5, 2015](https://portal.ct.gov/deep/endangered-species/endangered-species-listings/endangered-threatened--special-concern-plants) - [Maryland Natural Heritage Program: Rare, Threatened and Endangered Plants of Maryland](https://dnr.maryland.gov/wildlife/Documents/Maryland-NHP-RTE-Plant-List.pdf) - [Delaware DNREC: Rare and Uncommon Plants of Delaware](https://documents.dnrec.delaware.gov/fw/conservation/Rare-and-Uncommon-Plants-of-Delaware.pdf) ## Read before planting - [Ten planting mistakes that quietly kill trees](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/ten-planting-mistakes/index.html.md) - [Transplanting young trees: timing, water and protection](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/transplanting-young-trees/index.html.md) - [Protecting young trees from voles, rabbits, deer and squirrels](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/protecting-trees-from-animals/index.html.md) - [The habitat around a tree is part of the tree](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/habitat-around-a-tree/index.html.md) - [Invasive vines and shrubs are what is killing your woods](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/invasive-vines-and-shrubs/index.html.md) - [Native trees and shrubs for bees: pollen, nectar, nesting and a bloom calendar from willow to witch hazel](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/native-trees-for-bees/index.html.md) ## Related - [Planting-site check](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/site-check/index.html.md): for a thrive, struggle or fail verdict on Golden Heather, add ?species=golden-heather with zone (2 to 10), sun (full, part, shade) and moisture (dry, average, wet) to that address, for example ?species=golden-heather&zone=5&sun=part&moisture=average. - [Companion species for Golden Heather](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/companions/index.html.md?species=golden-heather): the natives that share its ground and the plants that pair with it in a yard. - [Growth estimator](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/growth/index.html.md): how the height and trunk projections are made; the estimate itself runs in the browser at https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/growth/#species=golden-heather - [Seed sowing planner](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/sowing/index.html.md): how Golden Heather is sown, in the chart for every species (treatment, cold days, depth, timing); the dated plan runs in the browser at https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/sowing/#species=golden-heather - [Pollination planner](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/pollination/index.html.md): what Golden Heather needs for a crop and how many to plant, in the table for every species; the planner runs in the browser at https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/pollination/#plants=golden-heather:1 - [Bloom and fruit calendar](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/calendar/index.html.md): the months Golden Heather flowers and fruits, in the grid for every species.