Volume 29 Issue 2, Spring 2024
by Kim Strader and Sheila Ferguson
Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is a popular plant with gardeners that blooms in the summer. While it is often sold as a native plant in our area, it is actually not native to Virginia or even to the Mid-Atlantic region. The Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora, the definitive online resource for determining what is native in Virginia, states that Echinacea purpurea is a “Native of the Midwestern US; commonly cultivated and occasionally established as an escape in weedy habitats (roadsides, etc.) of the Piedmont and mountains.”
Photo by Kim Strader
Does this mean that you shouldn’t have it in your garden? The answer is no. Purple Coneflower is not invasive, American Goldfinch love to eat the seeds, and it attracts pollinators. However, if you want to have a garden dedicated to plants native to Virginia or if you are doing a restoration project, you will want to use other plants instead.
Virginia native plant alternatives to Purple Coneflower that bloom during the same time period include Orange Coneflower (Rudbeckia fulgida), Blackeyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), and Culver’s Root (Veronicastrum virginicum). If you’re looking for that pop of pink and have moist to wet soil, Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) is another native alternative. Otherwise, try the later blooming Obedient Plant (Physostegia virgniana).
Smooth Coneflower (Echinacea laevigata) is the only Echinacea native to Virginia. It is listed as imperiled both globally and statewide and as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act. It has been listed since 1992 and is included in the Virginia Natural Heritage report of rare plants.
Kim Strader is the former assistant curator of the Native Plant Trail at the State Arboretum of Virginia at Blandy Experimental Farm. Sheila Ferguson serves on the steering committee for Plant NOVA Natives.
References:
Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
Natural Heritage Resources of Virginia: Rare Plants, December 2023