Echinacea Rustic Dwarfs produces an abundance of beautiful, stunning, annual flowers. Echinacea is also known as Coneflower and American Coneflower. Echinacea is native to North America. This plant is mainly found on the prairie in North America. Echinacea Rustic Dwarfs is a member of the Composite family (Astereceae) just like: Achilles, Wormwood, Aster, Cosmea, Thistle, Marigold, Cornflower, Daisy, Milk Thistle, Daisy, Dandelion and Sunflower. This beautiful, long-flowering garden plant is a mixture of different warm and sunny colours. The colours of Echinacea Rustic Dwarfs is a mixture of warm shades of golden yellow, orange, maroon and mahogany with a beautiful, striking and contrasting dark brown centre.
If the spent flowers are removed regularly, Echinacea Rustic Dwarfs flowers from July to October. This beautiful, attractive and eye-catching annual can easily be grown in large flower pots, window boxes, balcony boxes and smaller gardens and borders due to its somewhat smaller size. Put this cheerful, autumnal and beautiful plant together in groups for the best effect. Echinacea Rustic Dwarfs is also great for the bee and butterfly garden, the naturalised garden and as a long-lasting cut flower. Place Echinacea Rustic Dwarfs in a sunny, sheltered, well-fertilised spot with well-drained soil. If necessary, give this plant some semi-shade. This plant is much loved by bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects. Non hardy annual. Height: 40 - 60 cm.
Indoor sowing: mid-March - mid-April
Outdoor sowing: mid-April - mid-May
Germination: 8 - 21 days
Germination temp.: 18 - 20 °C
Sowing depth: shallow - 3 mm
Plant distance: 25 - 35 cm
Sowing distance between the rows: 25 cm
Plantposition: sunny - half shade
Flowering period: July - September
Sow indoors from mid-March. Sow in trays filled with moist and well-loosened potting soil. Sow thinly and shallowly and do not cover the seeds, but press them gently. Keep the seeds well moist and warm Cover the trays with a lid to keep the moisture in. Keep the temperature as even as possible and don't let it drop especially at night. Remove the lid as soon as the seedlings emerge.Transplant the seedlings into separate pots as soon as they are big enough to handle.
In early May, the young plantlets can be put outside during the day to harden off. Harden off the plantlets for 10 - 14 days. After this, put them in the open ground in a sunny, sheltered spot with well-loosened and well-watered soil. If necessary, give the plants semi-shade. Keep the Echinacea plants 25 - 35 cm apart.
Sow outdoors from mid-April, as soon as there is no chance of night frost. Sow shallowly and thinly and do not cover the seeds, but press or rake them gently into the soil. Provide a sunny, sheltered spot with well-loosened and well-drained soil. If necessary, provide semi-shade. Thin out the seedlings at 25 - 35 cm, once they are large enough to handle. Remove spent flowers, so Echinacea will continue to flower from July till September. Remove weeds. Water the flowers sufficiently during dry periods. Pick the flowers in the morning when they are just opening for a beautiful and long lasting (1 week) bouquet. The flowers of coneflower are edible. They have a fairly spicy flavour. Use sparingly to decorate dishes, for example.
