(📸 Juergen Bosse from Getty Images)

If you have been to a garden centre in the last few weeks, then I’m sure you’ve bumped into an Echinacea or two. As you may have noticed, the bloom colour has really diversified from those early days of vibrant pink (‘Magnus’) or white and has morphed into intense reds, blended greens, orange, vibrant yellow, true corals and even changeable, such as ‘Sunseeker’s Rainbow’. The flower form has also evolved to include single, drooping threadlike petals (Echinacea pallida), pom-pom, semi-double and even two-tiered forms (‘Doubledecker’), so there is a lot of Echinacea to choose from.

To help you visualise how you might use these versatile sun-loving perennials in your own garden, we have created ten pairings, which include both contrasting and monochromatic colour themes.

Echinacea ‘PowWow Wild Berry’ & Digitalis ‘Illumination Flame’

‘PowWow Wild Berry’ is actually a seed strain that bulks up very quickly and produces an abundance of intense rose-pink single blooms with complimenting rosy-orange cones. We have paired it with the tender hybrid Digitalis ‘Illumination Flame’ (USDA zone 8) that bears tropical-looking spires of flared hot pink flowers with creamy-orange throats, making it a perfect colour companion.

Echinacea ‘Artisan Yellow Ombre’ & Phlox paniculata ‘Sweet Summer Fantasy’

The intense golden-yellow of this single Echinacea literally pops against the two-tone violet-purple and contrasting white centres of the compact Phlox ‘Sweet Summer Fantasy’ it is matched with. Both are long blooming, make great cut flowers and are very cold hardy (to USDA zone 4).

Echinacea ‘Sunseekers Red’ & Penstemon ‘Cha Cha Cherry’

The hummingbirds and butterflies are going to love this red dynamic duo, with the semi-double blunt-petaled blooms of the ‘Sunseekers Red’ drawing in the Swallowtails. For the hummingbirds, the bright cherry-red tubes of Penstemon ‘Cha Cha Cherry’ are absolutely irresistible and are borne for a long period from midsummer to fall when deadheaded.

Echinacea ‘White Swan’ & Sidalcea ‘Rose Bouquet’

‘White Swan’ is one of the few heritage varieties (introduced in 1987) that has survived the test of time, much in part to its reliable display of pure white single blooms contrasted by a glowing golden cone. Its companion is the rather hard to find Sidalcea ‘Rose Bouquet’ that bears hollyhock-like deep rose-pink blooms on three-foot-tall spires.

Echinacea ‘Prima Ginger’ & Stachys ‘Hummelo’

‘Prima Ginger’ is a compact (16” tall when in bloom) Echinacea with unusual single flowers that emerge a soft orange and mature to an apricot pink. Regardless of the hue in question, the pairing of Stachys ‘Hummelo’ has you covered, as the abundant purplish-pink flower spikes are a perfect match throughout the blooming season.

Echinacea ‘Glowing Dream’ & Dianthus ‘Oscar Peach Edge’

Here are two colours which are notoriously difficult to complement, so we have taken the intense coral blooms of Echinacea ‘Glowing Dream’ and used the Dianthus ‘Oscar Peach Edge’ (which actually has a pale coral picotee) to create a somewhat monochromatic display, albeit a rather bright one. The tropical looking ‘Glowing Dream’ comes to us from Terra Nova Nurseries with an altogether breakthrough colour of watermelon-coral.

Echinacea ‘Sombrero Lemon Yellow’ & Leucanthemum ‘Real Sunbeam’

This jaune-on-jaune pairing starts with the brilliant golden yellow fragrant blooms of Echinacea ‘Sombrero Lemon Yellow’ which are further highlighted by its copper cones. The pale-yellow single daisies of Leucanthemum ‘Real Sunbeam’ (with deep golden centres) makes the perfect companion plant.

Echinacea ‘Sunseekers Rainbow’ & Achillea ‘New Vintage Violet’

Both these perennials change colours as the flowers fade, but they always seem to belong together. The ‘Sunseekers Rainbow’ bears blunt-petaled semi-double blooms that open pale yellow and shift to pink and coral hues, while the Achillea ‘New Vintage Violet’ opens a rich violet with tiny white eyes and fades ever so softly instead of just browning.

Echinacea ‘Artisan Soft Orange’ & Agastache ‘Kudos Mandarin’

The monochromatic orange blooms show well against the green foliage of both these perennials, with the slight colour shifts of the flowers adding interest. Echinacea ‘Artisan Soft Orange’ features deep orange blooms that fade as they age, while the Agastache ‘Kudos Mandarin’ bears flowers about the same colour as the fading Echinacea.

Echinacea ‘PowWow Wild Berry’ & Monarda ‘Balmy Purple’

Just to show you how versatile ‘PowWow Wild Berry’ can be in the garden we have paired it again with a compact Bee Balm and created yet another dazzling display. Monarda ‘Balmy Purple’ produces shaggy reddish-purple blossoms that are quite large for its compact size and will definitely attract those hummingbirds.

So, as you can see, with a little companion planting, your garden can dazzle with these 10 Echinacea power couples.

All images Copyright 2024 MK Lascelle

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