Pale Purple Coneflower, Echinacea pallida (Nutt.) Nutt., wildflowers of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden

Pale Purple Coneflower is an erect coneflower, 2 to 5 feet high with one or more green to purplish hairy stems with little branching. Leaves are alternate, simple, rough on both sides and are 5 to 20 times as long as wide. Most leaves are basal and the upper leaves are smaller. The inflorescence is a solitary flower head with a reddish-brown domed disk of disk florets that are rough and prickly and the disk is up to 1-1/4" wide. This is surrounded by pale purple to pink drooping petal-like ray florets that are 1-1/2" to 3-1/2" long and less than 1/4" wide. The disk florets mature to small tan achenes that remain in the seed head for weeks. The plant grows from brownish-black taproot that will penetrate the soil several meters. This plant can be contrasted to the Eastern Purple Coneflower, Echinacea purpurea, where the rays are over 1/4" wide, the central disk is much larger, and the leaves have teeth. Pale Purple Coneflower grows best in dry and mesic prairie types of well drained soil, in full sun. Echinacea, is Greek for sea urchin, referring to the prickly central disk. The species name, pallida, means "pale."

	Plants of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
	Common Name	Scientific Name	Plant Family	Garden Location	Prime Season
	Pale Purple Coneflower	Echinacea pallida (Nutt.) Nutt.	Aster (Asteraceae)	Upland	Late Summer
Other names and notes	Pale Purple Coneflower is an erect coneflower, 2 to 5 feet high with one or more green to purplish hairy stems with little branching. Leaves are alternate, simple, rough on both sides and are 5 to 20 times as long as wide. Most leaves are basal and the upper leaves are smaller. The inflorescence is a solitary flower head with a reddish-brown domed disk of disk florets that are rough and prickly and the disk is up to 1-1/4" wide. This is surrounded by pale purple to pink drooping petal-like ray florets that are 1-1/2" to 3-1/2" long and less than 1/4" wide. The disk florets mature to small tan achenes that remain in the seed head for weeks. The plant grows from brownish-black taproot that will penetrate the soil several meters. This plant can be contrasted to the Eastern Purple Coneflower, Echinacea purpurea, where the rays are over 1/4" wide, the central disk is much larger, and the leaves have teeth. Pale Purple Coneflower grows best in dry and mesic prairie types of well drained soil, in full sun. Echinacea, is Greek for sea urchin, referring to the prickly central disk. The species name, pallida, means "pale."