Growing and Using Echinacea: A Medicinal Herb Guide
Echinacea, a resilient herb renowned for its medicinal properties, thrives in gardens worldwide and is commonly known as “coneflower.” In this post, I will unveil the secrets of growing, harvesting, and using this medicinal herb. Learn about this beautiful plant from selecting the right species to mastering planting, harvest, and uses.
Echinacea Medicinal Qualities
Echinacea is rich in bioactive compounds with diverse therapeutic properties, including antioxidants, immunomodulators, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, and antiosteoporotic effects. Immunomodulatory compounds include glycoproteins, alkylamides, and polysaccharides, each contributing to its traditional medicinal uses.
Medicinal plant use, rooted in ancient traditions, continues to be a valuable source of the pharmaceutical industry, with plant-based drugs constituting a substantial portion of the pharmaceutical market. Echinacea is one of the plants most commonly recognizable on the ingredient lists and labels of some of the major cold and flu over-the-counter remedies in the United States.
- Burlou-Nagy, C., Bănică, F., Jurca, T., Vicaș, L. G., Marian, E., Muresan, M. E., Bácskay, I., Kiss, R., Fehér, P., & Pallag, A. (2022). Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench: Biological and Pharmacological Properties. A Review. Plants (Basel, Switzerland), 11(9), 1244. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11091244
Growing Echinacea
Choose the Right Echinacea Species
There are nine distinct species of echinacea and countless hybrids. While studies have shown a considerable amount of bioactive compounds in each of the echinacea species, these compounds are responsible for the medicinal qualities of the plant, the top three species for medicinal purposes are Echinacea purpurea, Echinacea pallida, and Echinacea angustifolia.
Echinacea purpurea is the most commonly cultivated for medicinal purposes, and as such, it is the species I will focus on today in terms of growing and using echinacea.
Luckily, Echinacea purpurea seeds and starter plants are readily found online and likely at your local greenhouse.
Check out some of my favorite seed suppliers for quality seeds and starter plants:
Select a Suitable Location
Black thumb gardeners rejoice! While there are a few considerations when selecting the best location for your echinacea, it is an overall hardy and low-maintenance plant.
These purple beauties had wonderful interest and a burst of color to any garden. Plant them in a large patch for easy harvest or in small groups or zig-zagging lines around tailored perennials to add more whimsy to your flower beds.
I do both here on my homestead; I have a large patch that I typically harvest from for medicinals, but I also have them planted throughout our yard and gardens. I also love the interest they add to the landscape through the winter, as their large brown cones stand tall through the snowy New England winters.
Hardiness: USDA zones 3-8 Echinacea acts as a hardy perennial. It can tolerate warmer zones and will act as an annual there.
Exposure: Echinachia prefers full sun but can tolerate partial shade.
Moisture: Drought tolerant. Once established, echinacea requires little watering. Apply a thin layer of wood or leaf mulch at the base of plants to retain moisture and keep weeds low.
Soil: Echinachia will do well in many soil types, including sandy soil, as long as it is well drained.
Size & Shape: Large dark brown cones surrounded by purple daisy-like petals atop a 24-36" tall stem
Planting
Outdoor Sowing: Plant echinacea seeds in early spring or late fall, approximately two months before your first frost date or a month after your last.
Starting Indoors: Start echinacea seeds indoors about 10-12 weeks before your average last frost date. Here in zone 5, that means starting echinacea indoors around the end of February.
Thinning: When echinacea plants are approximately 1" tall, thin them down to 1 every 18"-24" to allow room for growth, air circulation, and light distribution.
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Emergence: Expect seeds to take 10-20 days to emerge from the soil. First-year echinacea plants may not always produce blooms.
Echinacea Harvest
All parts of the echinacea plant are nontoxic and can be used medicinally, though certain parts are ideally harvested at different times to reap the most benefits from them.
Harvesting Echinacha Leaves & Stems: Harvest strong, healthy-looking leaves and stems in summer and early autumn when the plant is in flower starting in the first year of growth. Leave at least two sets of leaves at the bottom of the plant to promote future growth.
Harvesting Echinacea Flowers & Cones: Harvest bright, healthy-looking leaves and cones in summer and early autumn, starting in the first year of growth.
Harvesting Echinacea Roots: Harvest roots in the fall after the third year of growth to ensure a healthy continuation of plant expansion in the following years.
Whether foraging or harvesting from your gardens- it's a great rule of thumb to leave at least 1/3 of the plants unharvested. This ensures future growth and harvests and leaves enough behind to benefit the ecosystem continually.
Drying and Storage
Fresh echinacea can be used medicinally without the need for drying.
However, depending on your immediate needs, you may want to dry and store the plant for a period. To dry echinacea, hang echinacea parts in a well-ventilated area away from direct sunlight or use a food dehydrator until the plant becomes brittle.
Once completely dry, store the echinacea in airtight containers in a cool, dark place to maintain their potency.
Using Echinacea: 3 Easy Recipes
Medicinal plants can be prepared in a wide variety of ways. From oral tinctures to topical salves to teas. The type of plant and the benefits you hope to derive from it should drive your decision-making when it comes to preparations.
The most popular medical preparations for growing and using echinacea are teas, herbal syrup, and tinctures.
Medicinal Echinacea Tincture Recipe
Growing and using echinacea for tinctures is quite easy! Tinctures are a type of medicine that is made from fresh or dried plant matter and alcohol. The alcohol extracts the plant compounds and acts as a preservative, making them shelf-stable for years.
There are two types of people when it comes to making tinctures: those who follow a strict recipe and those who don't. Those who don't are known as "folk herbalists". Folk herbalists use approximate ratios of plant matter to alcohol to create their tinctures.
Echinacea Tincture: Fresh or Dry
Ingredients
- approx. 1/2 cup fresh echinacea (leaves, stems, petals, and cones) OR 4 tablespoons of dried echinacea
- approx. 1 cup unflavored vodka (at least 40 ABV)
Instructions
FRESH ECHINACEA TINCTURE
- Chop or tear up the echinacea and add it to a jar with an airtight lid
- Pour the vodka into the jar so that the echinacea is completely covered
- Cover the jar and shake once daily for approximately four weeks
- After 4 weeks, strain the tincture through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth. Squeezing all the vodka out of the plant matter.
- Pour the tincture into dark colored amber jars, and store it in a cool, dry, dark place for several years
DRY ECHINACEA TINCTURE
- Crush the dried echinacea and add it to a jar with an airtight lid
- Pour the vodka into the jar so that the echinacea is completely covered
- Cover the jar and shake once daily for approximately four weeks
- After 4 weeks, strain the tincture through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth. Squeezing all the vodka out of the plant matter.
- Pour the tincture into dark colored amber jars, and store in a cool, dry, dark place for several years
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Echinacea tinctures are mild so the dosage can be fairly high. Take one teaspoon (or 100 drops) of tincture 3-6 times daily. You may take the tincture "straight" or mix it with a beverage.
Medicinal Echinacea Root Tea Recipe
Drink a tea made of echinacea roots that can be consumed up to four times daily.
Echinacea Root Tea
Ingredients
- 1 quart water
- Approximately 1 oz of echinacea roots (cleaned)
Instructions
- Add the roots to a quart of cold water and simmer for 20 minutes
- Turn off the heat and allow the tea to steep for 10 minutes
- Strain off the water
- Serve
Notes
If you are using the folk method of tea making- a "handful" of echinacea root will work well. If you would like to be more precise use the 1:32 rule. This means 1 part plant matter, and 32 parts water.
You should feel free to also use ALL parts of the echinacea plant for this tea if desired.
Medicinal Echinacea Herbal Syrup Recipe
Growing and using echinacea as an herbal syrup is particularly alluring because it also does a nice job of coating the throat. Herbal syrups are a sweet and convenient way to dose plant medicines, and they can be taken straight or make a sweet addition to teas and other beverages.
Echinacea Herbal Syrup
Ingredients
- 1/8 cup dried echinacea roots, leaves, flowers, and/or stems
- OR 1/2 cup fresh echinacea roots, leaves, flowers, and/or stems
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup
Instructions
- Add the plant matter to 2 cups of cold water and simmer for 30 minutes
- Turn off the heat and allow the tea to steep for 10 minutes
- Strain
- Add the liquid back to the pot and simmer uncovered (to reduce by half, which should be approximately 1 cup)
- Add the honey or syrup while the liquid is still hot (ideally, the liquid to honey ratio is 1:1)
- Pour and store in glass jars in the fridge.
Warnings: While echinacea is generally mild, some people do report nausea and stomach pain with use.
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