Echinacea cultivars
Common name: Coneflower
Every year there are more Echinacea cultivars with vivid colours and dramatic names. With nine species in the genus, ornamental plant breeders have lots to work with. And these herbaceous perennials are all native to eastern and central North America.
Here are some of the Echinacea cultivars that enhance VanDusen’s summer border facing Oak Street:
‘Glowing Dream’ has long-lasting bright flowers and well-branched strong stems. It was bred by Terra Nova Nurseries of Oregon and is a member of their Dream Series:
‘Sombrero Salsa Red’ and ‘Sombrero Adobe Orange’ belong to the Sombrero Series, a Darwin Perennial introduction valued for super bloom power and well-branched habit.
‘Double Scoop Orangeberry’, another Darwin introduction, adds fiery, non-fading colour and a form that will hold its shape through winter. It belongs to the Double Scoop line.
The genus name Echinacea comes from the Greek ‘echinos’ meaning hedgehog, a reference to the flower’s spiny centre cone. This name has been used several times in the Linnaean classification system - for a superorder of sea urchins called echinacea and a species of moth called Coleophora echinacea. But not one hedgehog. If you scroll down, this link has good information on the history and background of Echinacea.
Text and photos (July, 2021 in the Garden) by Hughie Jones