Start growing
Prefers full sun and well-drained soil. Deep taproot makes it very resilient once established.
GROW SOMETHING WONDERFUL
Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
Your guide to planting, growing, and getting to know this plant.
THE PLANT NOTEBOOK
Coneflower care, from seed onward.
- Botanical name
- Echinacea purpurea
- Common names
- Purple Coneflower
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Genus
- Echinacea
- Species
- E. purpurea
Growing with your kit
The Seeds In A Cup® kit focuses on the 'Cone' – teaching how hundreds of tiny seeds grow in one complex head.
Propagation
By seed or division.
Seasonal growth & harvest
Blooms from mid-summer until frost; dried seed heads provide winter food for goldfinches.
Growing conditions
Open prairies and woodlands.
Weather & tolerances
Highly drought and heat tolerant.
Pests & plant health
Aster yellows (viral disease) and Japanese beetles.
Plant safety
Safe for humans and pets.
Botanical features
A perennial with large purple-pink petals surrounding a prominent, orange-brown central disc cone.
Varieties
‘Magnus’, ‘White Swan’.
Garden & everyday uses
Ornamental favorite
Native range & distribution
Native to Central and Eastern North America.
Conservation
Secure; some wild species are over-harvested and protected.
Name origins
From the Greek ‘echinos’ (hedgehog), referring to the spiny central cone.
History
Used by Plains Indians more than any other plant for medicine.