As echibeckia varieties continue to grow in popularity, many gardeners are looking for tips on how to care for echibeckia plants. Learn more about these fascinating hybrids and how to incorporate them in your landscape.
What is an Echibeckia?
Echibeckia is a cross between the Rudbeckia hirta and Echinacea purpurea. A handful of echibeckia varieties were first introduced to the market by Pacific Plug & Liner back in 2014. Since that time echibeckia hybrids have become more readily available at garden centers, in an expanding array of colors, and they’re becoming more and more popular as gardeners come to appreciate these beautiful, easy care plants.
The first named series of echibeckia plants is the Summerina® series. These are the varieties you are likely to find at your garden center in color blends ranging from brown, to yellow, to orange.
Echibeckias are not available from seed. Propagation is from cuttings in a controlled environment. In fact, the named varieties in the Echibeckia™ Summerina® series are patented. This means that unauthorized propagation, with the intention to distribute or sell plants, is strictly prohibited and violators of the plant patent could face legal consequences.
Characteristics of Echibeckia Plants
Each parent of the echibeckia brings something special to this hybrid. Rudbeckia contributes to echibeckia’s big flowers, long blooming period, and abundance of flowers. Echinacea also contributes to the longevity of the flowers but also the durable foliage and disease resistance.
- Most echibeckia varieties grow between 18-24” (46-61 cm) tall and just as wide. The foliage forms a dense, bushy mound with flowers held on sturdy stems above the foliage.
- Echibeckia flowers are big and incredibly long-lasting. Individual flowers can last for up to ten weeks on the plant. The bloom season starts in summer and continues into fall.
- Echibeckia are resistant to Powdery Mildew (Oidium sp. or Sphaerotheca fuliginea) and hold up well to wind, rain and temperatures up to around 104° F (40° C).
Growing Echibeckia
Whether you are growing echibeckia as a summer annual, or a perennial, the location and care of the plants remains the same from spring throughout the growing season. In fall there are a few steps that can be taken for perennial plants to do their best through the winter.
Location
In general, echibeckia grow best in USDA hardiness zones 7-9 in a location that receives six or more hours of direct sunlight each day.
Light
Try to give your plants enough space that all sides have exposure to good light. Spacing plants 18-24” (46-61 cm) apart should ensure adequate light as well as allowing good air movement around plants. Providing optimal light will encourage side buds to develop and produce the maximum number of flowers possible.
Soil
Tolerates just about any ordinary, well-draining soil but will grow best in soil that is rich in organic matter.
Water
Tolerates hot, dry conditions. In fact, echibeckia grows best if the top inch or two (2.5-5 cm) of soil surrounding the plant is allowed to dry between thorough waterings.
If plants are being grown in patio pots, you will want to be sure your plants are staying moist enough during dry spells or hot weather. You want to keep potted echibeckia consistently moist but not soggy. If you allow the top inch of soil to dry out between waterings; this typically prevents root rot while still ensuring that the plant receives adequate moisture.
Despite its good disease resistance, planting echibeckia in a location with high moisture and low light can lead to disease problems.
Feeding
A slow-release fertilizer for flowering garden plants will ensure plants get the nutrients they need throughout the full growing season.
Fall Care for Echibeckia
If you are growing eckibeckia as an annual, you can simply remove the plants after they die back in the fall and discard them with your compost.
In regions where echibeckia are hardy, the plants should be cut down to the ground when they start to die back due to frost. Apply a 2-3” layer of compost or bark mulch to help protect the roots through the winter.
Potted plants are more sensitive to damage from cold because the roots are above ground. Potted plants should be put in a place where they won’t be subjected to the worst of winter’s cold winds.
You could store potted plants along a fence, structure, or wall protected from westerly winds or you can heel them into the ground and surround pots with leaf or bark mulch.
Like most perennials, you may need to divide your echibeckia plants every three years or so if you want to maintain them at a certain size in the garden. Division is best done when plants are dormant but before the ground is frozen. Spring is also a good time for dividing echibeckias once the ground has thawed.
Ways to Use Echibeckia
Echibeckias are versatile plants that offer a lot of options for garden design, décor and other seasonal uses.
Grow Echibeckias in a Pot
Echibeckia plants grow happily in a pot. Grow them individually or in a large combination planter with other plants that have similar care requirements. Pots of echibeckia are perfect for use on a deck, patio, or sunny balcony.
Use Echibeckias for Fall Décor
With a blooming season that can extend into fall, echibeckias are a natural choice for fall harvest arrangements. The color palette is perfect for combining potted plants with traditional outdoor fall décor such as squash, pumpkins, chrysanthemums, and pansies.
Echibeckias Make Good Cut Flowers
Bring a garden touch indoors anytime during the flowering season with cut flowers. Echibeckia blooms are reported to last at least a week in a vase of water.
Add Color to Themed Gardens with Echibeckias
With its long blooming season and vibrant flower shades, echibeckias are a great way to add color to a pollinator garden, a low-water garden, or rock garden. Their compact, mounding form makes them a good choice for planting along a sunny walk or garden path.
Echibeckia Companion Plants
Obvious companions to plant alongside echibeckia would be their “parent” plants, Rudbeckia or Echinacea, since their preferred growing conditions are identical. But if you want to add more interest to a space then you’ll want to mix a variety of textures and flower forms with your echibeckia.
A few plants that would look good planted with echibeckias and that have similar cultural needs are: Russian sage, any of the many sedum species and varieties, spike speedwell, Japanese anemone, and hyssop.
Perennial Gardening
Flowering perennial plants are a great way to save time, money, and add variety to your landscape throughout the growing season. Learn more about designing with perennial plants in collection of articles all about perennials.
I planted my plant and it is droopy even after I water can I cut it back and let it start over
Hi Donna,
A droopy plant can result from a few things. The root system has a big impact on the overall condition of the plant. Overwatering or underwatering can affect the ability to uptake water. Overwatering can lead to root rot, which means the plant can’t uptake water through the damaged roots, and the plant will wilt. Underwatering is more obvious, as there isn’t water for the roots to uptake and that’s why the plant wilts.
Use a hand trowel to inspect the top 2-3 inches of soil around the plant to try to determine if the soil may be too wet or too dry. If it is either, then try to adjust watering as needed. If you have accidentally planted your echibeckia in a location that tends to have soggy soil conditions (low-lying area or near a downspout) you may need to move it to a better-draining position.
If your echibeckia is newly planted and not well-established, it could be more affected by leaf transpiration (the process where water evaporates from a plant’s leaves). This is a normal process for all plants but certain conditions, such as high heat, low humidity, or constant winds can cause excessive loss of leaf moisture that results in wilting. In these cases, plants usually recover quickly when the conditions improve (temperatures go down or the wind diminishes).
So, to answer your question, before you decide to cut back your plant, try to determine if something else is causing the problem. Consider this a last-resort option. If the roots are struggling, cutting back the plant won’t help, and you will be sacrificing foliage that the plant needs to produce energy.