Echinacea 'Mellow Scarlets'
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Echinacea 'Mellow Scarlets': A Meadow Mix of Orange and Red
Brilliant orange, light red, dark red. Each 'Mellow Scarlets' plant picks its own shade, like siblings who refuse to dress alike for the holiday card. Blooming in its very first year, it's ANYTHING BUT MELLOW.
Plant Characteristics:
- Botanical Name: Echinacea purpurea 'Mellow Scarlets'
- Common Name: Coneflower
- Height: 80 cm (31 in)
- Spread: 45 cm (18 in)
- Flowers: Daisies in brilliant orange, light red and dark red around a dark cone. Being seed-grown, each plant varies in shade.
- Bloom Time: Early summer to fall (June to October)
- Foliage: Green, coarse leaves in an upright clump
- Features: Good cut flower, blooms the first year
Where to Plant: Plant it in groups in a hot-coloured border, a pollinator garden or a cutting bed. The mix of oranges and reds looks natural, a bit like a wild meadow.
Companion Plants: Give 'Mellow Scarlets' a sunny, dry bed with steel-blue globes and a red-bladed grass. Lewisia 'Little Snowberry' tucks in at the front at 10 to 15 cm with white flowers in May and June. Dianthus Pretty PoppersÂź 'Kiss and Tell' adds semi-double pinks at 20 to 25 cm from June to September. Echinops ritro brings spiky steel-blue globes at 90 to 120 cm from July to September. Imperata 'Red Baron' adds upright blades that turn blood red, at 45 to 50 cm.
Plant Care: Plant in full sun or part sun with at least six hours of light, in average to fertile, well-drained soil. Avoid winter-wet spots, and lighten heavy clay with compost before planting. Water regularly the first season, then during long dry spells. Cut flowers and deadhead through summer to keep buds coming. Leave the last flower heads for winter interest and cut back in early spring. Divide in spring every few years if the clump gets crowded.
History: Jelitto Perennial Seeds in Germany introduced 'Mellow Scarlets' in 2026, alongside 'Mellow Limes', extending its Mellow line of seed-grown Echinacea purpurea that started with 'Mellow Yellows'. The species is native to the prairies and open woods of central and eastern North America.
Final Thoughts: Plant a cluster for a bonfire effect without any of the smoke. THE BUTTERFLIES BRING THEIR OWN MARSHMALLOWS.