Growing Echinacea Commercially
Answered by: Richters Staff
Question from: John Bush
Posted: Before April 1998

I am looking into growing Echinacia commercially in South Western Ontario. Do you have any information to help me get started?

There are three commercially important species: Echinacea purpurea, E. angustifolia and E. pallida. Most commercial growers are growing E. angustifolia and E. purpurea.

Nick Morcinek, the leading grower of echinacea in Ontario, discussed echinacea and his production and marketing methods at our 1996 Richters Commercial Herb Growing Conference. The transcripts of the conference are available for $35 (order no. B7100). Morcinek talked mostly in generalities, but you will find much that will be of great use to get you started.

Here are some specifics for E. purpurea:

The indirect seeding rate (sown in plugs and then transplanted to the field) is 750 grams per hectare (0.6 lbs per acre). We do not recommend direct seeding.

Yield (kg/hectare): Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4

Herb, dried 0 6300 9500 11000

Root, dried 0 0 0 1100

(1 kg = 2.2 lbs; 1 hectare = 2.5 acres)

Please understand that these are estimates; your results could be very different.

We don’t have agronomic information on the other species of echinacea yet.

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