Epacris impressa, also known as common heath, is a plant of the heath family, Ericaceae, that is native to southeast Australia: the states of Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and New South Wales. French botanist Jacques Labillardière collected the species in 1793 and described it in 1805. Four forms have been identified, but no subspecies are recognised. Growing in heathland, shrubland or open forest, it is generally a small shrub around 0.5 to 1 m (1 ft 8 in – 3 ft 3 in) tall, with small stiff leaves. The red, pink or white tube-like flowers appear from late autumn to early spring. Honeyeaters, particularly the eastern spinebill, feed upon the nectar of the flowers. It regenerates after bushfire by seed or by resprouting. A pink-flowered form is the floral emblem of the state of Victoria. E. impressa is difficult to propagate reliably, which has limited its use in horticulture and revegetation. It grows best in well-drained but moist soil in a semishaded position. A highly regarded garden plant, the common heath was first cultivated in England in 1825 with over seventy named cultivars, most of which have now vanished.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epacris_impressa

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

392:

Roman emperor Valentinian II was found hanged in his residence in Vienne, Gaul. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentinian_II

1836:

English astronomer Francis Baily first observed "Baily's beads", a phenomenon during a solar eclipse in which the rugged lunar limb topography allows beads of sunlight to shine through (example pictured). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Baily

1916:

Jesse Washington, a teenage African-American farmhand, was lynched in Waco, Texas, US, in what became a well-known example of racially motivated lynching. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynching_of_Jesse_Washington

1948:

The Australian cricket team, on tour in England set a first- class world record that still stands by scoring 721 runs in a day against Essex. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_cricket_team_in_England_in_1948

1966:

Disapproving of his handling of the Buddhist Uprising, South Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyễn Cao Kỳ ordered an attack on the forces of General Tôn Thất Đính and ousted him from the position. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C3%B4n_Th%E1%BA%A5t_%C4%90%C3%ADnh

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

speak volumes: 1. (idiomatic) To express more than one actually said. 2. Usually with about: to extend beyond the immediate topic under discussion. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/speak_volumes

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

To destroy an offender cannot benefit society so much as to redeem him.   --L. Frank Baum https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/L._Frank_Baum