ALL ABOUT ECHINACEA: BENEFITS AND CARE

echinacea

We are so excited to share with all our skinfooders the opportunity to give back to mother nature by sharing our echinacea seeds form our own SanRe garden! We have been doing this for some years now and are always excited to spread our love of gardening with our supporters interested in growing echinacea in their own space.

Benefits:
Our family garden contains the Echinacea Angustifolia plant/seeds -- which while still having beautiful flowers – it is not an ‘ornamental’ hybrid. There a lot of different kinds of echinacea, but only three of them are known to have holistic/medicinal properties, Echinacea purpureal, Echinacea angustifolia and Echinacea pallida.

Echinacea angustifolia, is a native to North America and has been used by Native Americans for a variety of afflictions. Recent studies have shown that due to echinacea’s high content of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties, they may help reduce cold and flu symptoms, lower blood sugar levels, and even reduce anxiety when consumed in small, regular doses.

When grown at home, you can harvest the flower for teas and the roots and stem for tinctures to boost immunity. Aside from our more humanly benefits, echinacea is a great treat for pollinators, and are known to attract butterflies, hummingbirds, and native bees.

Where to Grow Echinacea?
Echinacea grow in hardiness zones 3 to 9. They like well-drained soil, as they do not like muddy, wet conditions. They also like at least 4 hours of sun but will need some shade as well. So, a spot that gets morning sunshine and afternoon shade or vice versa is ideal.

When Should You Plant Echinacea?
When echinacea is grown from seed, it can take one to two years to fully bloom/flower. It is best to plant echinacea seeds as early as fall. Echinacea seeds need to undergo a process called cold stratification to germinate. Cold stratification helps soften and moisten the seed through freezing and thawing during the winter. When springtime comes, you should begin to see your echinacea make their debut appearance -- thereafter they should be very hardy, readily coming back each Spring and spreading vigorously!

Care
For the first few weeks, you will want to water your seedlings every day. When they begin to establish roots, you can begin to lean off daily watering, and begin to water once a week. When they have matured, they generally do not need to be watered unless you are experiencing a drought.

I hope that providing these echinacea seeds gives a good gardening opportunity, so you or a loved one will be able to experience the beautiful and immunity boosting benefits of echinacea plants for many years to come😊