Scientific Name
Echinacea pallida (Nutt.) Nutt.
Synonym(s)
Rudbeckia pallida, Echinacea pallida f. pallida, Echinacea pallida var. pallida, Brauneria pallida
Common Name(s)
Pale Purple Coneflower, Pale Echinacea
Scientific Classification
Family: Asteraceae
Tribe: Heliantheae
Genus: Echinacea
Origin
Echinacea pallida is native to the United States (in the Mississippi Valley, the southeastern Great Plains, and the region south of Lake Michigan).
Flower
Color: Pale pinkish-purple
Bloom Time: Summer
Description
Echinacea pallida is a coarse, hairy perennial that grows up to 4 feet (1.2 m) tall. It has narrow, parallel-veined, toothless, dark green leaves up to 10 inches (25 cm) long, and large daisy-like flowers with drooping pale pinkish-purple petals and spiny, knob-like, coppery-orange center cones. In summer, the flowers appear on rigid stems up to 3 feet (90 cm) tall, with sporadic blooms continuing into fall.
How to Grow and Care for Echinacea pallida
Hardiness: USDA hardiness zones 3a to 10b: from -40°F (-40°C) to 40°F (4.4°C).
Coneflowers are often listed as drought-tolerant, but they will do much better with regular water. I leave the plants standing through winter to feed the birds. Shearing them back in the spring will result in bushier plants that bloom longer into the season. Deadheading is the primary maintenance required with Coneflowers. They are prolific bloomers, and deadheading keeps them in bloom all summer. Luckily, each flower remains in bloom for several weeks. Flowers start blooming from the top of the stem. As the initial flower fades, more side shoots and buds will form along the stem. Deadhead the plants to keep getting more flowers.
If you don't want to start your own seeds, you can buy plenty of varieties as plants, especially by mail order. You can also divide plants or grow them from stem cuttings. You can plant coneflower in either spring or fall. Allow good air circulation to prevent fungal diseases.
See more at How to Grow and Care for Coneflower.
Links
- Back to genus Echinacea
- Plantpedia: Browse flowering plants by Scientific Name, Common Name, Genus, Family, USDA Hardiness Zone, or Origin
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