Audio Files: The Echinacea Renaissance

THE ECHINACEA RENAISSANCE

FROM THE APRIL 2023 ISSUE OF GROWERTALKS MAGAZINE

WRITTEN BY LOWELL HALVORSON

NARRATED BY BILL CALKINS

 

EXCERPT: Our modern echinacea grew out of this crisis. Breeders pulled back and reassessed their strategies, especially within the dominant innovators. Features that define a good echinacea today—such as heavy flower count, extended bloom window, long lifespan and slow-to-fade flowers—come from their “whole plant” approach toward selection and improvement. Rather than walking through a field of samples and picking out cool flower tops, breeders judged plants by their ability to survive winter, create multiple growing points and pass through TC production successfully.

 

Read the digital edition of GrowerTalks & Green Profit Magazine—April 2023: https://www.ballpublishing.com/magazine/gt_23_04/index.aspx