What is echinacea? Planting and caring for it in the open ground, photos, as well as methods of breeding, breeding echinacea will be described in this article. If you want to combine business with pleasure, be sure to plant the beautiful Echinacea in your area. Good fame goes about this representative of the family of asters, and she is well deserved. Echinacea has long been successfully used in folk and official medicine, and bright large buds, somewhat similar to multi-colored daisies, adorn our gardens and flower beds.
Echinacea is a perennial flower: it is unpretentious, easy to grow, has a good survival rate in a new place. The plant is easily propagated by dividing the bush or sowing seeds. For planting Echinacea, it is better to choose sunny places, but, as practice shows, in partial shade it also feels rather well.
Echinacea, photo:
There are no special requirements for the type of soil, with the exception of only light sand. If you have soil with high acidity in the area, it is recommended that you first add lime before planting this flower. The most common type of Echinacea is Echinácea purpúrea. This is Echinacea purpurea, about which Karl Linney, the world famous botanist, first spoke in 1753. Later, much later, scientists ranked Echinacea as a separate genus and identified 10 species. All of them have an external similarity and can often be confused. However, it is Echinácea purpúrea that is most often used for treatment, creation of medicines, decoration of garden plots, flower beds.
Echinacea - planting and care
The planting process itself can be carried out either in autumn or in spring. Hybrid cultivars propagate mainly by division (vegetatively) - this method, as well as generative (seeds) will be discussed a little later. So, for planting seedlings you have to dig small holes, 5-7 cm deep. The distance between them should be approximately 25-30 cm. If you are planting dividers, see that the holes are slightly wider and deeper than the root system of the plant. You can simply dig a seedling into the soil and gently squeeze the earth around it, you can also first place compost in the pit, and then the plant itself. After planting, the bushes should be watered.
If the echinanacea flower was purchased in a store, in a container or in a pot, then the planting hole should be quite deep and wide (about 40 cm). Experienced flower growers recommend mixing in equal proportions compost, garden soil and river sand, with this mixture you should fill the hole about 1/3. Next, the echinacea is carefully removed from the pot by transshipment, together with an earthen lump placed in an already prepared hole. It is recommended to immerse the seedling in the soil to the depth at which it was while being in the container.
Keep in mind that only in the second year of life will your echinacea bloom. Growing and caring for it will have to consist in regular generous watering (preferably in the evening). Weed harvesting, soil loosening - garden gardening for granted. As for the application of fertilizers, Echinacea can do well without them. However, if you want to feed your favorite flower, then it is better to start this business from the second year of his life. Echinacea flowers are usually fed with wood ash and rotted compost mixed in equal parts. It is better to do this in spring or autumn, after the plant fades. You can also use various complex additives for flowering plants, such as Agricola.
It is better to pick off faded buds immediately, unless, of course, you intend to collect seeds from them. With the onset of autumn, approximately in the last days of October, the ground part of the plant should be trimmed, covered with compost and dry foliage. Do not forget that purple coneflower can freeze if winter is snowless. That is why mulching with foliage or spruce branches is only welcome. As for the collection of seed, it is necessary to collect it only after the flowers have fully ripened. Their darkened midpoints are an indicator of maturity. Remove the seeds from the center of the bud, remove flower debris, transfer to a glass container or cloth bag. Remember that seeds lose their germination very quickly, so you should not delay the sowing of a new livestock of Echinacea.
Echinacea, photo of flowers:
Speaking about plant care, one cannot ignore the topic of pests and diseases. Echinacea has a fairly good immunity, but sometimes anything happens. The cause of the disease can be improper care or even weather conditions. Heat and high humidity (frequent rains), as well as temperature changes can trigger the appearance of ashtrays (powdery mildew). This disease can also occur from a glut of plants with nitrogen supplements. In this case, the good old Bordeaux fluid will come to the rescue. If your Echinacea flower has been affected by a fungus, then remove all infected fragments as soon as possible.
At an early stage, the problem is easier to cope with, but in a neglected state, in order to save the plant, one will have to resort to fungicide treatment (for example, Fundazolum, Topaz). It is better to completely remove all infected plants from the site, and treat the soil after them with a strong solution of potassium permanganate. Echinacea flowers do not ignore insect parasites. If you can collect individual representatives with your hands, such as slugs, then against the others it is best to use proven means - Actellik, Karbofos.
How to propagate echinacea?
As mentioned above, this plant is propagated by seeds and division of the bush. Division is considered the most convenient and effective method, which is best carried out in the spring (April) or in the fall, when foliage falls from the trees. The seed method is quite lengthy, but it is optimally suitable for gardeners living in cold regions. When inoculating in a tank, you will have a subsequent transplant of echinacea into the open ground. Now let us consider these two methods in more detail.
Breeding Echinacea
To do this, you should choose healthy bushes that are already at least 4 years old. The plant must be carefully removed from the ground, making sure that the root system is not damaged. Next, we divide the roots in such a way that 3 or 4 renewal buds are present on each dividend. It is not necessary to disassemble the rhizome into many small fragments, it is enough to select 2-3 high-quality well-developed divisions. After this, the selected parts are recommended to be placed in the Kornevin solution (for two hours), and then planted in the soil as described above. When planting, make sure that the root neck is above the ground. The upper part of Echinacea is better to cut off so that it directs all its forces to rooting.
Echinacea - seed cultivation
To collect seed material, also try to select the most healthy and strong bushes. Seeds can be sown directly in the ground with the onset of spring (April), when there is confidence that there will be no more frosts. After that, it is enough to sprinkle them lightly with soil and wait for shoots that will not slow down to appear even at a temperature of +13 ºC. This method is best suited for those who live in the warm regions of our country. Do not spare the seeds when planting, in any case, then you can always thin out too thick seedlings. In other cases, it is better to use the seedling method, pre-sowing seeds in containers.
When to plant Echinacea seeds? The best time for this is February or early March. The appropriate soil is poured into the containers in advance, grooves are made, in which the seeds are laid to a depth of not more than 0.5 cm. Approximately 2 cm should remain between the seeds. On top you need to carefully sprinkle them with a thin layer of river sand or the same soil into which they are were planted. After this, you should irrigate your "flower bed" with water from a spray bottle (room temperature). Next, the container must be transferred to a room where the temperature varies between +14 .. + 18ºC. At night it is better to cover it with glass or cling film, but in the morning you will have to remove the protection. Under such conditions, it may take a month and a half before echinacea purpurea sprouts. Growing by container method always takes quite a long time, and this is normal.
Do not forget to periodically moisten the earth - your efforts will be justified. After hatching, the seedlings begin to grow quite quickly, as if compensating for the long weeks of calm in the stage of planted seeds. Keep it away from direct sunlight, but keep it in the light.
When can I transplant Echinacea? Fortified plants are planted in open ground after May 10-15, surrounded by standard care. Be prepared for the fact that in the first year they will not please you with flowers, but only grow foliage and reach 20 cm in height. But next year you can already admire the bright fragrant buds and collect a stock of medicinal raw materials from hand-grown bushes.
Echinacea - varieties, photo
Today, there are many beautiful hybrids of Echinacea purpurea. All of them are highly decorative, are honey plants and compete with each other in beauty. Echinacea are distinguished by color, the shape of the buds, the height of the stems, but at the same time they are all alike. It is rather difficult to single out some special varieties, and to describe all the available ones is even more difficult. Below I will present photos of those varieties that I met.
Grade Supreme Cantaloupe:
Grade White Swan:
Grade Magnus:
Variety Hot Papaya:
Secret Passion Grade:
Grade Cranberry:
Grade Cranberry Cupcake:
Echinacea Strange, photo:
All varieties of this flower deserve attention, they worthily emphasize the features of your landscape design, and if necessary they will hide its shortcomings. From mid-summer to the end of September, attractive and not capricious echinacea will give you beauty and aroma. Planting and care in the open ground, photos of flowers, the nuances of growing are now known to you. Do not waste time, stock up on seed or dividends.
And let you succeed!