Hardening off: This process can take up to a week. When up to two sets of true leaves have emerged, you are able to pot up the plant to a larger container or start hardening off to move to the garden depending on your last frost date.
This is easily managed by using grow lights but if you don’t have any make sure to place seedlings in a window with direct light for most of the day and rotate cells so the seedlings don’t get leggy reaching for light. Once echinacea has germinated, provide bright light for up to 16 hours a day and at least 8 hours of darkness.
Keep soil moist and temperature constant around 65-70° until seedlings emerge (10-20 days) Use a sterilized seed starting mix in a seed cell tray or small bio potĬover the seed with ¼” loose seed starting mix To do this follow the below schedule from seed to garden: Sow echinacea seeds indoors at least 8-10 weeks prior to your last frost date. This is why I personally choose to start my echinacea under grow lights to get a head start on each growing season. In my experience, echinacea takes a little more time to germinate when growing from seed compared to other companion plants but with a little patience you will have a sturdy, blooming perennial supporting your edibles in no time. A typical bloom season is from late June to September. Organic echinacea is very easy to start from seed indoors and can be transplanted outside after the last frost or just as easily can be sown directly outside in the summer for a fall bloom. Planting Echinacea When to Plant Echinacea from Seed If you want to water less often, a little mulch around the base goes a long way to shade the soil and lock in moisture in drought situations. Once echinacea is established, it requires a minimum amount of water throughout the growing season however, due to forming a long tap root in the seedling stage it’s important to water deep and more often until the flower is strong and sturdy. Be cautious to not over fertilize with nitrogen because your main goal is to see blooms and not just green leaves. Fertilizer:Įasy to please, compost is your number one go-to nutrient for echinacea, once in the spring growing season and once in the fall. To be a successful companion plant in the garden make sure to place coneflowers on the sunny side of tall vegetable plants such as corn, garden trellises, etc.
#Purple coneflower seedlings planing in fall in zone 6 full#
Plant echinacea in an area with 4-5 hours of full sun with a shade break either in the morning or afternoon. For this reason, it makes an effective and beautiful perimeter plant in the garden where water lacks and has been knows to survive periods of drought. Soil:Įchinacea prefers soil on the dry side and can be found in rock gardens but does not do well in boggy conditions. Coneflower will bloom mid-summer to fall (July-Sept) but expect its second growing season to produce more blooms. Echinacea is a supportive companion for almost every plant, but as with most things in the garden, I recommend keeping it away from invasive mint plants in raised garden beds.Įchinacea’s ideal Growing Conditions Season - When to Plant Echinaceaįor the best display of blooms, plant echinacea seedlings in the fall for a spring show or after your last frost for fall display. I find that pairing coneflowers with other native pollinator plants in the garden, like Butterfly weed, boosts the attraction for butterflies, bees, beneficial insects and hummingbirds. What are the Best Echinacea Companion pLants? The following spring, you may then cut back your coneflower before any new foliage appears to stimulate growth. This will not only provide food for wildlife over the winter but will ensure an emergence of blooms in the spring. The best way to ensure this beautiful perennial reseeds itself for the next growing season is to refrain from cutting back echinacea at the end of the fall season. Diverse in its uses, this beautiful coneflower is pleasant as a companion plant to the garden, a striking cut flower for arrangements and edible in teas and tinctures. Common Echinacea Facts What are echinacea’s benefits?Įchinacea is known as “nature’s antibiotic” because its leaves, roots and flowers have been used for hundreds of years to fight infection and boost the immune system.
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