I was finally able this morning to plant my echinacea in their new homes. Last evening, I dropped the final branches in this area which was the reason for not planting sooner. Here is the final planting, which is looking very sparse and even a little pitiful, but time will take care of that.
There are also a couple hydrangea back here that haven’t done well over the years, some feverfew that reseeded itself here, and some perennial ageratum . . . just in case you’re wondering why it looks fuller than the few new plants I put in.
I have quite a few of these pale pink volunteers that reseeded from my front garden. Only a couple of them are blooming, but next year there will be lots of them, and hopefully with more light, they will fill out to be luscious plants.
One white volunteer, which is most likely just a mutation from the pale pink since I’ve never had white echinacea in my yard before.
And these are the six others that I purchased. First up is Echinacea ‘Cheyenne Spirit’, which is the soft color of a clay pot, although in this photo it looks more pink.
This is Echinacea ‘Harvest Moon’, appropriately named for its soft pastel yellow color.
This is Echinacea ‘Double Scoop Raspberry’. Not sure I like this one at all. It didn’t look like this when I bought it, nor did the picture. But she’ll stay for the variety and uniqueness she brings to the garden.
This is Echinacea ‘Pow Wow Wild Berry’. I have two of these and she is more of a hot pink, but has seen better days, and is losing her “pow” as she goes over.
Another Echinacea “Cheyenne Spirit”, but this one is a pale yellow and totally different color from the one that looks more like a clay pot.
I’ve had these plants since May and I corralled them all together in a big tub trug for watering purposes. I wasn’t paying as much attention to them as I should have, and with all the rain we had in June, I’m embarrassed to say they sat in water way to much. Thus, their root systems were compromised and this poor lady will be lucky to survive. When I planted her, I took one of her dead heads and spread her seeds so I will be sure to not lose her altogether.
Unless I find some plants at the garden centers drastically reduced at the end of the summer, I intend to fill the rest of the area with plants I’ve grown from seed to save money. To that end, I’m trying a new technique for me and growing some seedlings for Echinacea ‘White Swan’.
I have this half barrel that I didn’t plant up this year, mostly because of the overgrown honeysuckle trees, it was in total shade. So . . . I decided to start my Echinacea ‘White Swan’ in peat pots that I’ve sunk in the dirt in the barrel. I thought it might be a good way to keep them more uniformly moist in this extreme heat and no rain.
I’ll let you know how it works.
Linking with The Propagator for “Six on Saturday”.
I think that’s a first for all the Sixes being echinacia! I didn’t know there was such a variety of colours!
I would imagine there are way more than I have shown here. I think the most popular are the pink ones. At least that’s the color I see most around here. The goal is to mix them all together into a riot of color . . . but that will take some time.
I’ve no idea why but I really struggle to grow Echinacea. Everyone says they are easy too 😳 anyway, yours are lovely. ❤️
Thank you for your kind comments – they seem to grow very easily here, reseeding themselves if you let the flower heads go to seed for the birds. They spread them around for you. Mine have a long way to go to achieve the riot of color I’m envisioning for this area.
Wow! What a fabulous collection! They are so brilliant for late summer, aren’t they? Whilst they don’t grow well for me, I am enjoying yours.
Goodness, I’m liking that Double Scoop Raspberry. I think it’s as delicious as its name! I like echinacea very much. There’s something really appealing about their little fur hats and falling petals.
This sweet plant will probably grow on me with time. I am anxious to see what it looks like next summer when it has had a year in the ground. I’m more a fan of single blooms than doubles, but some of them win me over.
I’m surprised they don’t grow well there, but then they are a native American plant. They are grown here everywhere by folks I wouldn’t necessarily call gardeners and they add such a wonder touch of color to the garden for these hot summer days when everything else is struggling. It looks like rain this morning and that is a glorious welcome. Let’s hope it materializes.
I really like the double scoop raspberry! doesn’t look remotely like an Echinacea but I like it. Is the foliage purple too?
I think that’s the reason I don’t like it since it doesn’t look like the others, but there needs to be one “stand out” in the crowd – right? It is purple/pink. These plants were really stressed when I put them in the ground so they don’t look nearly as pretty as they did when I bought them, and the double scoop doesn’t look at all the same. It was more of a single blossom when it was purchased.
Echinachea is a wonderful plant & you’ve gathered a nice collection. The double scoop is new to me, but I do like it. Wonder, do the bees? I’ve read they aren’t as fond of that type flower as they are of the daisy type. I’m impressed that yours self seed. I’ve never been able to get mine to grow. I’ll be keeping an eye on how things go for you, cheering from the sidelines.
Right now, I’m just trying to keep them alive through the transplant. We haven’t had any rain and their root systems were compromised when we had too much and they sat in it. Not sure yet about the bees, they are pretty busy working all the zinnias.
I’m assuming they will self seed since I have volunteer plants all over my yard, but I’m drying flower heads for seed and I will let you know how they do. I’ve read they may not bloom true to color, but I’m going for a mixed color patch of flowers, so only time will tell.