欧石楠（学名：Erica）是指杜鹃花科欧石楠属的植物。全球大约有七百多种的欧石楠，当中大部分都产自南非，被称为「南非特有种的皇后」；另外尚有七十多个物种大致分布于非洲其它地域、地中海地区及欧洲地区。图中显示的「圣诞欧石楠（Erica canaliculata）」，因为形态像日本的著名图案「蛇の目」（常见于家纹、和伞等），因此在日本有「蛇眼石楠花」的称号。

其同科植物帚石楠是杜鹃花目中的另一个种属「帚石楠」（学名：Calluna vulgaris），经常与欧石楠互相混淆。两种花的主要分别是帚石楠的花萼的裂片遮盖着花瓣，而欧石楠的花瓣则反过来盖着萼片。帚石楠在欧洲非常闻名，亦曾经是西欧及北欧许多荒地的主要植被，因此有「山中薄雾（Mountain Mist）」的称号。可制花茶，其花蜜亦具备药效价值。

Erica /ˈɛrᵻkə/, is a genus of roughly 860 species of flowering plants in the family Ericaceae. The English common names "heath" and "heather" are shared by some closely related genera of similar appearance. The genus Calluna was formerly included in Erica – it differs in having even smaller scale-leaves (less than 2–3 mm long), and the flower corolla being consisting of separate petals. Erica is sometimes referred to as "winter (or spring) heather" to distinguish it from Calluna "summer (or autumn) heather".