Purple Cone Flower

This is a showy, but invasive perennial as it seeds itself and
would take over the entire garden without judicious weeding.
It has an interesting history which I would like to share with
you;













Plant Guide

-t
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CONEFLOWER
Echinacea purpurea
(L.)
Moench.
Plant
S

Alternative Names
echinacea, snakeroot, Kansas snakeroot, narrow
-
leaved purple coneflower, scurvy root, Indian head,
c
omb flower, black susans, and hedge hog
Uses
Ethnobotanic
: Purple coneflower (
Echinacea
purpurea
) was and still is a widely used medicinal
plant of the Plains Indians. It was used as a painkiller
and for a variety of ailments, including toothache,
cou
ghs, colds, sore throats, and snake bite (Kindscher
1992). The Choctaw use purple coneflower as a
cough medicine and gastro
-
intestinal aid (Moerman
1986). The Delaware used an infusion of coneflower
root for gonorrhea and found it to be highly effective.
The purple coneflower was the only native prairie
plant popularized as a medicine by folk practitioners
and doctors. It was used extensively as a folk remedy
(Kindscher 1992). Purple coneflower root was used
by early settlers as an aid in nearly every
kind of
sickness. If a cow or a horse did not eat well, people
administered
Echinacea
in its feed.
Echinacea
is widely used as an herbal remedy today.
A purple coneflower product containing the juice of
the fresh aerial parts of
Echinacea purpurea
was
found to make mouse cells 50
-
80 percent resistant to
influenza, herpes, and vesicular somatitis viruses.
This product was available in Germany in 1978
(Wacker and Hilbig 1978). Perhaps the most
important finding so far is the discovery of immuno
-
stimulat
ory properties in
Echinacea purpurea
and
E.
angustifolia
(Wagner and Proksch 1985, Wagner et
al. 1985). Stimulation of the immune system appears
to be strongly influenced by dose level. Recent
pharmacological studies indicate that a 10
-
mg/kg
daily dose o
f the polysaccharide over a ten
-
day
period is effective as an immuno
-
stimulant.
Increases in the daily dosage beyond this level,
however, resulted in “markedly decreased
pharmacological activity” (Wagner and Proksch
1985, Wagner et al. 1985). Other resea
rch has shown
that the purple coneflower produces an anti
-
inflammatory effect and has therapeutic value in
urology, gynecology, internal medicine, and
dermatology (Wagner and Proksch 1985).
Ornamental
: The purple coneflower is often grown
simply for its o
rnamental value, especially for its
showy flowers. The best possibility for obtaining a
new cultivar is in the hybrids between
Echinacea
purpurea
and
E. angustifolia
var.
angustifolia
, whose
progeny are compact, rounded, and bushy plants
about two feet in
diameter (M
c
Gregor 1968).
Status
Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State
Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s
current status, such as, state noxious status and
wetland indicator values.
Description
General
: Sunflower Family (Ast
eraceae).
Echinacea
purpurea
is a perennial herb 1.5
-
6 dm (0.5
-
2 ft) tall,
From TAMU
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BWG Digital Library
-
Vascular Plant Images
with a woody rhizome or tough caudex. The plant
has one to several rough
-
hairy stems, mostly
unbranched. Basal and lower cauline leaf blades are
ovate to ovate
-
lanceolate with se
rrate edges, up to 2
dm long and 1.5 dm wide, and slightly heart
-
shaped
at the base. Cauline leaves are similar but become
smaller as they extend up the stem. The flowers are
in heads like sunflowers with the disk up to 3.5 cm
across. The drooping ray f
lorets have ligules 3
-
8 cm
long, and are reddish
-
purple, lavender, or rarely pink.
The disk florets are 4.5
-
5.5 mm long, and are situated
among stiff bracts. Flowers bloom from June to
August. Pollen grains are yellow. Fruits are small,
dark, 4
-
angled
achenes.
Distribution
The purple coneflower grows in rocky prairie sites in
open, wooded regions
. Echinacea purpurea
extends
eastward through the Great Plains bioregion from
northeast Texas, Missouri, and Michigan. For
current distribution, please consul
t the Plant Profile
page for this species on the PLANTS Web site.
Establishment
Native
Echinacea
species are dwindling in the wild
from loss of habitat and over
-
harvesting.
E.
purpurea
is not as threatened as
E. angustifolia
. In
the wild,
E. purpurea
gr
ows sporadically along
waterways, with a few scattered individuals. Plant
densities are too low for efficient harvest for
commercial purposes.
E. purpurea
is the most
widely adaptable species for cultivation. It is cold
and heat hardy, easy to grow, and
boasts high yields.
Bioactive constituents
of E. purpurea
compare
favorably with
E. angustifolia
, although there are
proportional differences.
E. angustifolia
has more of
the alkylamides, while
E. purpurea
has more of the
equally immune enhancing caffei
c acid derivatives.
They are both effective medicines. A combination of
both probably affords the most broad
-
spectrum
immune
-
enhancing effect. Historically
, E. purpurea
was rarely utilized by pharmaceutical companies.
It takes three to four years for
roots to reach
harvestable size (Foster 1991). Yields for cultivated,
dried roots of three
-
year
-
old
Echinacea purpurea
grown at Trout Lake, Washington, were 131 kg/ha
(1,200 lbs/acre) (Foster 1991). According to Richo
Cech (1995), a mature two
-
year old
E
. purpurea
plant yields 2.25 pounds of fresh flowering aerial
portions and 0.5 pounds of fresh root per plant.
Propagation from Cuttings
Purple coneflower can be propagated by division of
the crowns. This technique results in stronger plants
initially a
nd eliminates the tedious nurturing and
tending of the slow
-
growing seedlings (Kindscher
1992). Harvest roots when plants are dormant, when
leaves begin to turn brown. Wash roots and remove
most for use. Then carefully divide the crown by
hand to make o
ne to five “plantlets.” Replant the
divisions as soon as possible. It is important that they
don’t dry out, so if replanting is delayed a couple of
hours, dip the plants briefly in water and keep them
in a sealed plastic bag in a cool, shady place until
you
are ready to replant them. When replanting, ensure
that the remaining fine roots are well spread out in
the planting hole and the soil is pressed firmly around
the plant. These plantlets can be grown in flats in the
greenhouse during the winter to re
-
establish their root
systems, then replanted in the field the following
spring for another round of production.
Seed Propagation
Echinacea purpurea
seed is easy to germinate.
The following information is provided by Richo
Cech (1995).
The seed can be sp
ring
-
planted without cold, or
cold stratification, to germinate.
Propagation is easily done in flats, which are
sown with approximately ¼ ounce of seed per
flat, evenly sprinkled on the surface and covered
with about ¼ inch of potting soil.
The flats are
left outdoors through the winter and
watered if necessary.
A light screen over the flats will diminish the
severity of heavy rain and snow, and will also
keep out cats.
Spring germination can be greatly enhanced by
bringing the flat of cold
-
conditioned see
d into
the greenhouse, whereupon rapid germination
may be expected.
Once the second set of true leaves appears, the
seedlings are put into pots or are spaced at
approximately two inch centers in another deep
flat. Seedlings must be carefully weeded and
wa
tered.
In late spring or early summer, the hardy
seedlings, now with a four
-
to
-
six inch root
system, may be transplanted into the field or
garden one or two feet apart.
Regular spacing with one foot between the plants
and two feet between the rows will res
ult in
approximately 21, 800 plants per acre. A
generous two
-
foot spacing with three feet
between the rows will result in approximately
7,500 plants per acre.
Timely watering during dry periods greatly
increases the size of this plant. A sparing side
dr
essing of organic compost, usually in the mid
-
spring, will assist this sometimes slow
-
growing
herbaceous perennial in outranking competitive
weeds.
An ounce of well
-
cleaned
E. purpurea
seed contains
approximately 6,000 seeds. A pound contains around
96,0
00 seeds. Given a normal spacing of one foot
between the plants and two feet between the rows, an
acre would contain 21,800 plants. Given a 68%
germination rate, a pound of good seed could produce
three acres of plants. This same acre, dormant
harvested
for the roots at the end of the second year
of growth, would produce (at 1/2 lb. per root) 10,900
lbs of fresh root.
Harvesting and Processing the Seed
Seed can be harvested during the fall of the
second year. Harvest the seed in autumn when
seeds are r
ipe, before the fall rains set in. Seed
should be from the largest and most vital plants.
Stop watering when the seeds begin to mature
–
excessive watering at this stage is not needed and
it may damage the seed crop.
Snip the cone
-
heads off and put them
in buckets.
If the seed is still a little green, dry the cone
-
heads in the sun.
Separate the seed from the chaffy debris. It is
important to break up the cone
-
heads without
damaging the seed. Run the seed through a
hammer mill or compost chopper at low
RPM
through a one
-
inch screen. Then pass the seed
and chaff through a ¼ inch stationary screen.
Shake the remaining seed and chaff through a
screen that is too small for the seed to pass.
What you have left is the seed with only the
chaff that is the sa
me size as the seed.
Lay out a flannel sheet and pour a cupful of the
seed/chaff along the edge. Lift the top edge of
the sheet and roll the seed to the other end where
your partner is waiting to carefully funnel the
seed into a bowl.
Make sure the seed i
s thoroughly dry. Store in
plastic bags in a cool, dry, and dark place.
Plastic bags allow the seed to respire, while glass
does not. Seed thus stored remains viable for
about three years.
Management
Herbivores, such as insects and deer, are not a
pro
blem with
Echinacea
. Gophers and moles can be
a problem as they eat the roots. Goldfinches love the
Echinacea
seed crop and can clear out all the seed in
a few days.
Cultivars, Improved and Selected Materials (and
area of origin)
ECPU is widely availab
le through most nurseries and
seed companies. Contact your local Natural
Resources Conservation Service (formerly Soil
Conservation Service) office for more information.
Look in the phone book under ”United States
Government.” The Natural Resources Cons
ervation
Service will be listed under the subheading
“Department of Agriculture.”
Cultivars
: King, Sombrero, Alba, Bright Star
Leuchste, Crimson Star, Magnus, Ovation,
Springbrook’s Crimson Star, Talent, Thompson and
Morgan Hybrids, White Flower Farm Stra
in, White
Lustre, and White Swan.
References
Cech, R.A. 1995.
Echinacea Native American tonic
roots
. A Horizon Herbs Publication, Williams,
Oregon.
Foster, S. 1991.
Echinacea
–
nature’s immune
enhancer
. Healing Arts Press, Rochester, Vermont.
Gilmo
re, M. 1977.
Uses of the plants by the Indians
of the Missouri River region
. University of Nebraska
Press, Lincoln, Nebraska.
Hart, J.A. 1976.
Montana: Native plants and early
peoples
. Montana Historical Society, Helena,
Montana.
Hartmann, H. T., D.
E. Kester, & F. T. Davies, Jr.
1990
. Plant propagation principles and practices
.
Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. 647
pp.
Hutchens, A.R. 1991.
Indian herbalogy of North
America
. Shambhala, Boston and London. pp. 113

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