Scientific name - Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moensch

Synonyms --

Popular names - American coneflower, purple coneflower, Rudbeckia Rouge, Roter Sonnenhut.

Distribution and Habitat - originating in North America.

Description - herbaceous perennial, rhizome cylindrical. Reddish stem, 80-100 cm tall, slightly pubescent-hirsuta, branched. Leaves alternate, petiolare, lanceolata-ovata, margine evening, slightly pubescent; to the top of the stem leaves are Sesi. Flowers hermaphrodite, involucre nested, bracts linear-lanceolata lanceolata to, ligula pink-purple flowers, 8 inches long, reflexes, needle on top, 6 mm long, tubular flowers, dark red to purple-brown. Dolls bed. Receptacle conical. Blooms in May-October. Fruit achenes. Pollination made by insects (butterflies).

Growth rate -

Tolerances - poor soils and short periods of drought.

Requirements - grows on any soil but prefers well-drained soils, clay-sandy, sunny exhibitions.

Management - Past flowers are clipped to encourage flourishing in November. If the seeds when the flowers are sought leave to seed maturation.

Propagation - by seeds, sown at 50-70 cm apart and 6 mm depth, before sowing the seeds stratify, germinate in 14-21 days on 21-23 ͦ C. By parting bushes in spring or autumn. Plants propagated varieties will inflorii after a year and multiply by splitting the clumps can inflorii even next summer.

Diseases and pests - slugs.

Natural partners and Garden - Achillea sp., Delphinium sp., Echinops sp., Geranium sp., Phlox sp., Solidago sp.

Cultivars and varieties --

Properties and Uses - Echinacea has been used for centuries as a medicinal plant, but recently was promoted and that Immunostimulators.

Echinacea preparations are used in chronic diseases of the respiratory and lower urinary tract, and externally to treat wounds and chronic ulceration. Both preparations for internal use and those for external use on the basis of echinacea not be used more7-8 days.

Other species used are Echinacea Echinacea pallida (antioxidant more powerful than Echinacea purpurea) and Echinacea angustifolia.

A combination of Echinacea, Baptisia and Thuja is a sure way against cold symptoms.

Based products Echinacea purpurea and Glycyrrhiza glabra immunostimulator have potential.

It is recommended to allergy sufferers, diabetics or with serious chronic diseases.

Myth, Legend and Folklore - American Indians found that the roots of Echinacea have medicinal properties. In traditional medicine, is used as a blood purifier, rheumatism, infections, snake bites, tumri, syphilis, eczema and hemorrhoids.

References

Claire Kowalchik, William H. Hylton - Roda's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs - Roda Books, 1998

Eric Chivian, Aaron Bernstein - Sustaining Life - Oxford University Press, 2008

Jack Ritchason - The Little Herb Encyclopedia - Woodland Publishing, 1995

Michael Castleman - The New Healing Herbs - Roda Books, 2001

Ovid Bujor - Guide to Medicinal and Aromatic Plants A to Z - Fiat Lux, 2003

Ruth Trickey - Women Hormones and the Menstrual Cycle - Allen & Unwin, 2004

Steve Taylor - Advances in Food and Nutrition Research - Academic Press, 2003