How to Grow Echinacea Plants in your Garden

Gardener's HQ Guide to Growing Hedgehog and Purple Coneflower

Echinacea plants are hardy perennials.

They bloom from the summer until the beginning of autumn. When in bloom they display white or red daisy-like flowers.

Some Common names for members of the Echinacea plant genus include Coneflower, Purple Coneflower, and Hedgehog Coneflower.

They typically reach heights of between 60 cm and 1.2 m (2 to 4 feet). This makes them ideal for use in garden borders. Echinacea attract bees, birds, and butterflies to the garden, and also make a fantastic dried flower.

Visit this page for specific advice on growing Echinacea purpurea plants.

Echinacea purpurea by asdfawev.

EchinaceaGrowing Guide and Facts

Common Names: Coneflower, Hedgehog Coneflower, Purple coneflower.
Life Cycle: Hardy perennial.
Height: 24 to 58 inches (60 to 140 cm).
Native: Northern America.
Family: Asteraceae.

How to Grow Coneflower (Echinacea)

If you plan to grow Coneflowers outdoors from seeds, then they should be sown at a depth of 3 mm (1/8th inch) Do this either in autumn or early in Spring.

Coneflowers should be grown in a sunny or lightly shaded area of the garden. This location should have good drainage and ideally a soil that has a pH between 5.5 and 7.

If you first plan to grow seedlings of Echinacea species indoors, then they should be started off about 9 or 10 weeks in advance. Plant out in early autumn, or before the last frost of spring.

It usually takes about two to three weeks for Coneflower seeds to germinate. Do this in the dark at a temperature of 21 to 24 degrees centigrade (70 to 75°F).

Once ready to be transplanted in the garden, the Coneflower plants should be put out using a spacing of about 30 cm / 12 inches (small) to 60 cm / 24 inches (larger plants) apart.

Caring for Coneflower and other Echinacea Plants

When Echinacea plants are growing in the garden they require regular watering. Their inflorescence stems should be cut back to ground level at the end of autumn.

If you require more plants, then Coneflower can be divided in the autumn. Alternatively, cuttings can be taken from the roots in the spring.

I hope that you found this guide on how to grow Echinacea plants in your garden. You may also enjoy my gardening guides on how to grow Ragwort, Helianthus plant, and Tagetes plants.