Common Name: coneflower
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Asteraceae
Zone: 3 to 8
Height: 1.00 to 1.50 feet
Spread: 1.00 to 1.50 feet
Bloom Time: June to August
Bloom Description: Yellow with copper cone maturing to coral-pink then pale salmon
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Dry to medium
Maintenance: Low
Flower: Showy, Fragrant, Good Cut
Tolerate: Deer, Clay Soil, Dry Soil, Shallow-Rocky Soil
Culture
Easily grown in average, dry to medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Best in full sun. This is an adaptable plant that is tolerant of drought, heat, humidity and poor soil. Divide clumps when they become overcrowded (about every 4 years). Plants rebloom well without deadheading, however prompt removal of spent flowers encourages continued bloom and improves general appearance.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Echinacea is a genus of seven species all endemic to eastern and central North America. Coneflowers bloom from June to August with some sporadic later bloom. Attractive to butterflies and other insect pollinators. Good fresh cut or dried flower. The dead flower stems will remain erect well into the winter, and if flower heads are not removed, the blackened cones may be visited by goldfinches or other birds that feed on the seeds.
‘Irresistible’ is a double coneflower that features changing flower colors as the flowers mature. Flowers (a) emerge with yellow rays and a large copper cone, (b) mature to coral-pink rays with a deeper pink center pom-pom, and (c) mature further as the pom-pom lightens to citron-yellow and the rays lighten to a pale peach-salmon. Each double flower (to 3 1/2 " diameter) is fragrant. Flowers bloom from late spring to late summer, sometimes with additional sporadic bloom until frost, atop sturdy branched stems rising in an upright clump to 32" tall and to 30" wide. Medium green leaves (to 6” long) are narrow-ovate. 'Irresistible' is the result of a cross conducted in Warmond, The Netherlands, in 2006 between Echinacea 'Razmatazz' (female parent) and numerous unnamed and unpatented selections of Echinacea purpurea (male parent). U.S. Plant Patent PP20,756 was issued on February 16, 2010. The double blooms this cultivar produces are not as beneficial to wildlife since they do not produce pollen, nectar, or seeds.
Problems
Susceptible to aster yellows disease and eriophyid mites. Deer tend to avoid this plant.
Uses
Border fronts, rock gardens or part shade areas of open woodland gardens. Best in groups or massed. Attractive specimen/accent.