Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Grow Your Own Medicine: Echinacea

Have you ever considered the "medicine" available to you, grown in your own backyard (or farm).  From Basil to Coneflower and even Thyme, there are so many reported health benefits of many common (and not so common) herbs and flowers. We started with Basil as it is probably the most common herb and arguably the easiest to grow.

Echinacea, also known as coneflowers, enjoy a sunny location with fertile soil. If your soil isn't particularly fertile, work in a little compost and supplement with a good organic fertilizer.   Well-drained soil is a must.

Plant echinacea seeds in early spring, as soon as the soil can be worked, and when you still expect another frost or two. Sow the seeds 1/4" deep and 2" apart.

Germination: 10-20 days
Days to Harvest: 60-90 days

From Garden Guides,
"Coneflowers enjoy a sunny location with fertile soil. If your soil isn't particularly fertile, work in a little compost and supplement with a good organic fertilizer. Well-drained soil is a must. In moist areas, you might need to plant in a raised bed. New plants and seedlings will need to be watered until they are established. Once they are growing well, they will thrive on the available moisture from rain except in extremely dry areas."

From Fight Viruses with Food & Herbs,

Echinacea is a classic member of the antiviral herbs. Not only does it fight viral and bacterial infection, it also stimulates the white blood cells and is good for the immune system. Use both the leaves and the roots of this plant.
For more information, check out our Grow Your Own "Medicine" page

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Marys-Heirloom-Seeds/229833070442449

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3 comments:

Unknown said...

I love to grow and use herbs. Echinacea is one that I haven't been successful with so far, but I will keep trying :)

Brandyn Blaze said...

We have been buying Echinacea for years, I don't know why I never thought to try growing it ourselves! I will be bookmarking this to reference later when we start our next garden!

JoAnna said...

I grow echinacea but I think it must be some alien variety because they are 6 feet tall! Every year! I grew them from seed, not sure where the seeds came from, and I think they are reaching for sun because their patch probably doesn't get as much sun as they want. I put them near the front door thinking they'd be so pretty but they tower over any visitors and look pretty ridiculous!