Ever heard of echibeckia? I hadn’t, but I found it in the nursery as I was searching for a replacement for a ‘Prairie Sun’ rudbeckia this morning. (One of them sadly got scorched in last week’s 100 degree temperature).
‘Prairie Sun’ rudbeckia
While I can luckily order my replacement, I bought a ‘Summerina’ echibeckia in case my promised rudbeckia doesn’t arrive… They look somewhat similar. It turns out that echibeckia is what you get when you cross rudbeckia with echinacea!
‘Summerina’ echibeckia
Echibeckia is a brand new plant series. The growers claim that they have the beautiful colors and fast growth of a rudbeckia with the hardiness of an echinacea. Their large flowers last for up to three months. They claim to be “self-cleaning”, requiring no dead-heading to keep blooming. Now that’s an advantage!
Instructions say to plant echibeckia in well-drained soil with full- to part-sun exposure. They grow to up to 36″ tall.
You can locate ‘Summerina’ echibeckias online at Vander Giessen’s. I may do a little searching on their site for other varieties, as echibeckia sound like a potentially interesting addition to my garden.
