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Photo Credit: Courtesy of AB Cultivars, Netherlands

As its name implies, ‘Pink Double Delight’ coneflower is a true delight in the garden.

Once upon a time, the coneflower (Echinacea sp.) had pretty white or light purplish-pink blooms. Then someone discovered a yellow one. Next arrived a dwarf variety. Now the range of colors, sizes and flower forms seem almost endless, meaning there’s an Echinacea for everyone!

Due to their ability to thrive in harsh climates and their drought tolerance (once established), coneflowers have long been a favorite of gardeners. Butterflies love them, too, and hummingbirds are known to feed on the nectar. It’s no wonder why this disease-resistant, easy-to-grow perennial caught the interest of plant breeders around the world. They’ve come a long way over the past few years, with a range of flower coloring that grows more fascinating every spring. In fact, the last I counted, there were more than 40 named varieties of Echinacea on the market. Here are a few new ones for 2008:

E. purpurea ‘Pink Double Delight’ is an exuberant, compact (yet full) plant that gives endless months of beautiful pink to bright rose-colored blooms. This is the first release of the Confections Series, and it’s a superior, fully double pink. (The Confections Series is introduced to North America from Plants Nouveau, an organization that helps bring new plants to market in the US and Canada.)

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Photo Credit: Courtesy of AB Cultivars, Netherlands

The gorgeous double-flowering ‘Coconut Lime’ coneflower adds a whole new dimension to any Echinacea collection.

Blooming starts midsummer, and the show continues through fall. I’ve had reports of ‘Pink Double Delight’ blooming like mad in mid-October as far north as USDA hardiness Zone 5. (This cultivar far surpasses the double pink forerunner ‘Razzmatazz’ that brought much disappointment to gardeners and growers everywhere.) Pairing ‘Pink Double Delight’ with ‘Black and Blue’ salvia (Salvia guaranitica ‘Black and Blue’) is definitely a winning combination, or add some ‘Moonbeam’ coreopsis (Coreopsis verticillata ‘Moonbeam’) to the foreground for a sunny vignette.

The second Confections Series release is the first double white coneflower ever! E. purpurea ‘Coconut Lime’ is a nicely compact, very hardy Echinacea that blooms for weeks and weeks. Combine both ‘Pink Double Delight’ and ‘Coconut Lime’ and you’re in for a real treat! You’ll be delighted with the stunning combo of prolonged blooms. Imagine this new white double around a Summer Wine ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Seward’) with ‘Rozanne’ cranesbill (Geranium ‘Rozanne’) in the foreground. Beautiful!