Love perennials? Learn more, along with timely planting advice, garden design inspiration, tips and more in our weekly newsletter.Echinacea purpurea (also known as 'Eastern Purple Coneflower' or simply 'Purple Coneflower') is native to Eastern North American and in the sunflower family. Plant in masses in borders, meadows, native plant and wildflower gardens.Add color and height to a mixed container planting.Excellent choice for cut flowers with their long, strong stems.Russian sage, black-eyed Susan, Shasta daisy, phlox and liatris make complimentary garden companions.Early-bloomers like ‘Green Jewel’ and ‘Merlot’ start flowering in May, while cultivars such as ‘Fatal Attraction’, ‘Pica Bella’, and ‘Springbrook’s Crimson Star’ continue into September. Mix early- and late-blooming varieties to enjoy colorful flowers up to 5 months.They can also be bothered by leaf miners, powdery mildew, bacterial spots, gray mold, vine weevils, and Japanese beetles. There’s no cure, so once you notice a plant is infected, dig it up immediately and throw it away. The organism is spread by sap-sucking insects like leafhoppers (and can also be spread on pruners during deadheading). Symptoms are deformed flowers, sometimes with weird tufts in the cones, and yellow leaves with green veins. Is “aster yellows,” a virus-like disease caused by a phytoplasma. Some gardeners choose a middle ground and collect the seeds and plant them in carefully selected spots for the following season. Deadheading can help to control this if they are getting out of hand. If spent flowers are left intact, they will reseed with little effort on your part. Coneflowers need at least an inch of water weekly.ĭivide clumps when crowded, about every 4 years. Water regularly, but let soil dry out in between. Tolerant of drought, but does best in average, dry to medium moisture. Be careful, over-feeding can lead to an abundance of foliage and a lack of flowers. Work a bit of compost in around the plants if flowers are small or poorly developed. Or, if you prefer to leave the dried seed heads, it can be cut down in early spring. Once your coneflower has finished blooming, it can be cut down to ground level to over-winter. Flowers appearing post-deadheading can be smaller and less satisfying, so why not just leave the first, bigger flowers to go to seed and give the birds a feast? That way you can leave them be, guaranteeing food for another beloved category of wildlife-birds, particularly small songbirds like goldfinches, which are crazy about the seeds. Though deadheading is a common garden practice to encourage repeat blooming, many varieties these days are flower machines and will keep producing without snipping off spent blooms. These easy-care perennials require only the basics: regular watering of about an inch per week, a light layer of compost added in the spring, and to be cut back in fall, and even that’s optional if you prefer to leave the seed heads. Purple coneflower ( Echinacea purpurea) is a popular perennial in Zones 3-9. See more Bee-Friendly Flowers & Plants for Hummingbirds. Other pollinators, such as honeybees and hummingbirds will visit Each composite flower (actually a compact arrangement of ray and disk flowers) offers up a fully loaded buffet table for butterflies. For weeks, even months, during the summer and fall the blooms and seed heads will attract a multitude of winged beauties. If you want to enjoy butterflies and songbirds in your garden plant coneflowers. Other animals that may take a taste include rabbits, squirrels and woodchucks.ĭo coneflowers attract bees and butterflies? However, if deer are hungry enough, they will eat almost anything. Their spiny centers and strong aroma deter deer. Many gardeners report that they are deer resistant. All are native to the U.S., found in areas across the Midwest and South. Most well-known are the purple coneflowers, but pink, red, orange, white, yellow and green varieties are available.Įchinacea purpurea, is most familiar to gardeners, there are other varieties includingĮ. Varies by species and cultivar, but bloom times usually range from June to August or later. Some may tolerate partial shade, and in hotter southern climates, some light afternoon shade can prevent burning. Varies by species and zone, but typically thrive in full sun. : Varieties 2 to 5 feet tall and 1-1/2 to 2 feet wide. Varies, but species range from Zones 3 through 9.
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