Enchanting echinacea flowers in the summer garden by Silva Wischeropp

About "Enchanting echinacea flowers in the summer garden"

by Silva Wischeropp

About the artwork

Enchanting summer blossoms of the coneflower in magical colours. This dreamlike photo was taken with the Nikon D90 camera on 29 July 2016 in the late evening hours.

Echinacea (Echinacea, pronounced [eçinaˈt͡seːa], also [eçiˈnaːt͡sɛa]), also known as false coneflower or hedgehog's head, is a genus of plants in the Asteraceae family. The botanical genus name Echinacea is derived from the ancient Greek word ἐχῖνος echínos [eˈkʰiːnos] for sea urchin (Echinoidea) and refers to the genus-typical, conspicuous, spiky-tipped chaff leaves that protrude above the tubular flowers. All species are native to eastern and central North America.

Echinacea species grow as perennial herbaceous plants which, depending on the species, usually reach heights of up to 140 cm. With the exception of Echinacea purpurea, all species have taproots. The upright stems are unbranched to branched. The plants can be hairy in different ways. The leaves, which are alternate, basal and distributed on the stems, are more or less stalked. The simple leaf blade has one, three or five veins. The leaf margin is usually smooth, sometimes toothed or serrated. The leaf surfaces are sometimes smooth or usually hairy.

Coneflowers are known as ancient medicinal plants that were used by the indigenous peoples of North America. There is evidence of its use for toothache and poisoning, as a painkiller (including for sore throats and stomach ache), for burns, colds and rheumatic complaints. Today it is used to support respiratory or urinary tract infections and externally for poorly healing wounds. The species Echinacea purpurea, pallida and angustifolia are mainly used for this purpose. The medicinal effect is controversial in science; various studies and meta-studies come to different conclusions.