Echinacea purpurea and other plant varieties

Echinacea purpurea is an unpretentious and undemanding plant. However, for normal growth and development, she needs proper care.

Echinacea purpurea

Echinacea is a flower that belongs to the Astrov family. It was described by K. Linnaeus. The plant has a healing effect on the body. It is used in folk and traditional medicine. It is also popular in landscape design.

Echinacea is a perennial rhizomatous flower. In natural conditions, it grows on the North American continent. The flower is common on rocky hills and steppes. Even the American Indians knew about the healing properties of this plant, so it was grown and used on a large scale.

What does echinacea look like?

The name of the flower is translated as "prickly hedgehog". This is due to the fact that its stem is rough. Plant height can reach 1.5 m. The leaf plates are wide, tapering towards the end. The inflorescences resemble chamomile. Flowers can be red, white, yellow and pink. Flowering begins in the second half of July and lasts two months.

Beneficial features

Echinacea (flowers) can have a healing effect on the body. The roots and parts that grow above the ground are very rich in vitamins and minerals. Together, they have antiviral, antimicrobial, wound healing and immunostimulating effects.

On the basis of echinacea, various medications are produced. The beneficial properties of echinacea contribute to a quick recovery. They also strengthen the body, restore normal physical and mental health, affect the rapid healing of wounds, heal tonsillitis and tonsillitis, and improve blood clotting.

Echinacea is also popular in garden decoration. It will look better in the background of the lot. It is often planted next to dahlias, yarrows, rudbeckia, salvia and other ornamental plants.

Echinacea types

Echinacea - the herb, in addition to the purple appearance, has other types and varieties. In nature, there are about nine varieties of flowers. Gardeners mainly use purple hybrids. Below is a description of the most popular echinacea varieties.

Hot Papaya

Echinacea Hot Papaya has red double flowers with an orange tint. The plant grows up to 80 cm. The diameter of the flowers is 8 cm.

Ayherb

Echinacea Ayherb grows up to 80 cm. Flowers have a pinkish tint.

Eccentric

Echinacea Eccentric is a perennial plant. The maximum height of the bush is 60 cm. The inflorescences are large in the form of a ball. The center is terry, and the petals look down. At first, the flowers have a bright orange color, then the petals change color to fiery red.

Eccentric view

White

Echinacea is a herbaceous perennial plant. Its height is up to 80 cm. The petals are painted white. Flowers have high medicinal qualities.

Yellow

Echinacea yellow has large flowers. Its petals are bright yellow, and the center has a chocolate hue. For its growth, loose soil and a sunny place are needed.

Milkshake

Echinacea Milkshake has large flowers. They resemble pom-poms in a light green shade. The middle is orange. The petals are painted in a delicate white color. Flowering occurs within two months. The shrub reaches up to 1.5 m.

Type of Milkshake

Guava

Grown in mixboders and flower beds. Reaches 80-100 cm. Flowers are large and double bright red. Leaves are narrow, oval. The color of the leaves is green. Sometimes there is a purple tint to the base.

Guava view

Other notable varieties:

• Butterfly. It grows up to 40 cm. The flowers are bright pink, and the center is bright brown;
• Burgundy is a perennial. The flowers are large, the petals are painted in the color of Burgundy wine. The inflorescences are very bright;
• Marmalade. Grows up to 80 cm, inflorescences are bright orange, terry;
• Twister. It grows up to 50 cm, the petals have a greenish tint;
• Red hat. It can reach up to 1.3 cm, has pink petals and a red core.

Butterfly view

Planting and leaving

Planting and caring for Echinacea purpurea outdoors is not difficult. It can be planted in autumn or spring. Often the plant is planted after dividing the bush. It is possible to grow a flower from seeds. However, this method is applicable only to species crops. The place where it is planned to plant the flower should be well lit, and the soil nutritious and well-treated from weeds.

Planting process:

1. Make holes about 50 mm deep. There must be a distance of at least 30 cm between the holes.
2. Put compost on the bottom.
3. Plant echinacea.
4. Water abundantly.

If the plant was growing in a container, the hole should be about 0.4 m. It should be filled with compost, garden soil and sand. The plant is transferred into a hole along with a lump of earth.

Watering

The plant is watered in the evening. This is done abundantly and often.

Top dressing

In the second year of growth, the plant is fed with wood ash and rotted compost. Thanks to this, flowering occurs more abundantly. Top dressing is carried out in the spring and after the flowers have fallen off the plant.

Features of care during flowering

During flowering, it is also necessary to care for the flower. As a top dressing, it is worth choosing complex mineral fertilizers, which include potassium phosphate.

Features of care after flowering

After the plant stops blooming, preparation for winter is necessary: ​​pruning shoots and sheltering bushes.

Preparing for winter

The plant in question is frost-resistant. If there is very little snow in winter, the flower may freeze. This is especially dangerous for young bushes that are not even a year old. To prevent the flower from dying, in the last days of October, shoots are cut from the plant, and the root collar is covered with mulch. Above, they cover with dried foliage or spruce branches.

Reproduction methods

To grow echinacea, you can use one of the methods: growing seedlings or vegetative method.

From seed

Collect seeds at the end of the season. This is done gradually, as they ripen at different intervals. The seeds are removed after the basket turns dark. It is necessary to collect seeds with gloves. Then they need to be sorted out and dried. You can also purchase ready-made seeds at a garden store.

Planting material must be sown at the end of February. Planting instructions:

1. Seed preparation. They are soaked in water, as their shell is very hard. The seeds are wrapped in a napkin, placed on a plate and soaked in water. It is important that air flows to them.
2. When the seeds begin to sprout, they are sown in any container to a depth of 5-7 mm.
3. Next, sand is backfilled. Then the earth is moistened with a spray bottle.
4. The container is covered with foil and placed in a warm place.

The soil with seeds is moistened with a spray bottle. Excessive moisture is unacceptable. The film should be removed for a while in order to ventilate the container. Seedlings will appear in 1.5-2 months.

How to grow from seeds

Dividing the bush

This method is applicable for plants from 2 to 4.5 years old. The method can be applied in early spring. This requires:

1. Dig up the plant and divide it into several parts. Each division should have a bud and adventitious roots.
2. The scion is placed in a liquid immunostimulant.
3. They land in the ground. The root collars do not need to be deepened.

Thus, the planting is carried out in open ground. In cool weather, the flower is planted in a pot, and covered with agrofibre on top. After a month and a half, the bushes should take root. In the spring, the plant can be transplanted into the garden.

Diseases and pests

The plant in question is resistant to diseases and pests. The occurrence of ailments is possible due to improper care. When it is hot and humid in summer, and also there is a strong fluctuation in temperature, the plant can get sick with powdery mildew. Infected plants have white bloom on the leaves. They must be treated with Bordeaux liquid.

Other fungal diseases are cercosporiasis and septoria. They begin with the fact that spots appear on the leaf plates, and the plant itself withers before our eyes. When the flower is not severely affected, then you just need to remove the affected areas. If everything is running, then it is treated with fungicides.

The appearance of slugs, bedbugs and slobbering pennies is possible. Slugs are collected by hand. Crushed walnut shells are spread on the leaves in an even layer. It will prevent the spread of the pest. Insecticides are used against insects.

Diseased plant

Gardening tips

Experienced gardeners advise to adhere to the following rules for the care and cultivation of echinacea:

• for the winter, the plant is best covered with an oak leaf, which is specially harvested for this;
• if there are problems with flowering, then it is better to try several varieties;
• after planting seeds in a container, they need constant moderate moisture. Otherwise, the seeds may simply not sprout;
• during planting, the land must be prepared. For this, compost, garden soil and river sand are mixed. The wells are poured with this mixture;
• Echinacea grows in the same place for no more than five years. The plant must be dug up, divided and transplanted into new places.

Echinacea is a beautiful flower rich in medicinal properties. In addition, it is a beautiful flower bed decoration. Its herb contains polysaccharides, organic acids, resins and essential oils. The plant is unpretentious in care, however, if the rules of care are not followed, the plant can get sick and die.