Based on the numerous photos of coneflowers that I have seen on WordPress and Facebook I can see that Purple Coneflower is a favorite of gardeners, bees, butterflies and photographers alike! I started a half dozen or so of them by seed about 20 years ago and now enjoy vigorous patches of them in the gardens throughout my yard. It’s spiky center looks and feels similar to a sea urchin (echino from the Greek) and thus its name Echinacea.
There is much to like about these flowers. They are easy to care for and earn their keep with their long lasting color and form. I particularly enjoy “coneflower watching” since they draw a flurry of pollinator activity that is fun to watch and photograph. They are great to share with beginner gardeners which always draws a smile. I leave a bunch of the dried seed heads standing in my garden in the fall much to the delight of the goldfinches who then perch on them and eat the seeds (more coneflower watching!). I’ve pulled out my favorites from the many photos I took this year and hope you enjoy them.
What is your favorite thing about coneflowers?
composting words 
I adore how they are tough, native, late summer perennials that spread into larger clumps. Even my hubby (the hobby photographer) commented today about how lovely ours are, several clumps getting larger every year and cheering our late summer gardens with color and busy bumblebees. Your photos are wonderful!
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The bees and butterflies do love them! And a great example of being both strong and beautiful. I’m glad you enjoyed the photos too.
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Knowing their use as healing herbs!
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That is a wonderful thing about coneflower.
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These are great photos, my favorite thing about this flower is how well they are doing in my garden with so little effort.
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Thanks for sharing what you like best about Purple Coneflowers. It is such a pleasure to have beautiful flowers that are easy to care for. 🙂
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Beautiful photos and you make it look easy. Great work on these!
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Thank you. I took a bunch of them over a couple week’s time and picked out the best ones.
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Great photos!
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Thank you!
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