Over time they change to this nice red color...
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You get this nice look with several shades of red/orange on the same plant. It seems to be a very tough, dependable plant as well!
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Very pretty, I bought this one as a plug this spring too. I haven't let mine bloom tho... Hopefully it makes it through the winter.
I shovel pruned Double Decker, last year some of it's flowers had the top knot, this year nothing so it's history. I shovel pruned Sunrise too, the plant just kept getting smaller and smaller so it's gone too. The rest of my echinaceas have been really nice this year.

Annette

I don't quite understand the shovel prunning practice on tender perennials..to me I'd expect it to kill the plant..so what is the purpose of shovel prunning to begin with? Clint, when you order plugs, do you have to care for them any specail way? What do you do when they first arrive? Plant them in 4 in. nursery pots and leave them indoors or out of the sun? Never seen any plugs at our local nurseries.

I planted these in the garden when they arrived without any special treatment; however, a lot of people grow them in small pots and then transfer them to a larger pot before planting them out. It can be a challenge to grow Echinaceas in pots for many people because they are so easy to over-water. If you do grow some indoors to start them early, I suggest using several small fans to blow air across the plants. This has greatly improved my success with starting these inside.

If I buy plugs in the Summer, I grow them inside under lights until fall and then I plant them out. They don't take the heat as well as more established plants so it's best not to plant them when it's hot out.

A good source for small plants is mcgperennials.com...They have really good service and have a great selection. That's where I got my plants.

WOW! That is a very impressive show from one plant. I will certainly be looking for 'Hot Summer' to join my echies next spring. Thank you for sharing. :)

Pippi, when they say they "shovel pruned" a plant, I think that means they dug it up.
I don't understand that practice at all. Because a plant doesn't flower to your expectations, you throw it away?
I'm happy to have any flowers at all, and certainly would not consider killing a plant I spent time and money on.
Just my li'l old opinion. ;) ~JoAnn

JoAnn is correct, 'Shovel pruning' is an expression indicating you are going to throw the plant away. We all buy plants and seeds based on descriptions by sellers and photos in catalogs, but sometimes plants just do not live up to expectations. Either they don't grow well, or they end up with some disease or other failing. If a plant is 'useable', I doubt it would be a candidate for 'shovel pruning'. Most people will move a plant that is just in the wrong place, or give it away if they just don't like it. If it gets to the point they 'shovel prune', it is usually because after observing it for a period of time, the conclusion was that it was not a performer but a detriment to the garden.

I think shovel pruning is justified in both plants she was talking about. They didn't grow well here either.

Hot summer! Wow, my two favorite colors, red and orange! I love the way yours look when some orange blooms have morphed into red ones. I'll have to find some echinacea of this variety. They are beautiful.

Gorgeous blooms!

This one is from Dutch breeder Marco van Noort. For a cool video of this and other of his new introductions, check out my blog below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cool Plants

Yes, that video will make you change your mind about coneflowers. You'll want more and more. Thanks for sharing that information with us. I've looked at that video and it is interesting all the varities you don't hear much about.

Were can you buy "hot summer" coneflower plugs? Any recommended mail order?

Up to now it has not been any better for me than ANY of the rubbish series 'Big Sky'. The same distorted flowers as any tissue propagated echinacea. What is more , one of the clumps changed colour to ordinary purpurea (no, it is not a seedling inside another plant)

I saw this plant at the nursery last year and the flowers looked nothing like echinaceamaniacs pics. I'm guessing it doesn't perform the same all the time?

I started these same echinacea from seed two winters ago, and only now am seeing robust foliage. I went through extraordinary measures with a makeshift greenhouse in my basement, Christmas lights for warmth, timers, misting, fans --- not to mention the cost of supplies. I have yet to see a flower. I put the 20 survivors of the 100 original seedlings in a nursery bed in my yard and then dug all but 5 up in the fall and transplanted them where I really wanted. You guessed it --- only the 5 remaining plants are showing signs of life this year! I estimate those plants to have cost about $50 each.

On the brink, thanks for a good laugh this morning (however, condolences for your losses). I don't think you should have to work so hard for seedlings. I start lots of things from seed, and if they can't hack it out there in the real garden (with reasonable care such as watering and protection from slugs when they are little, etc), they probably weren't a genetically strong specimen to start with.

I haven't had a good experience with Big sky cultivars either, although 2 of the original 3 Summer Sky are still hanging on (one of which is 1/2 the size of the other).

I am impressed however, that every one of the Echinacea 'Bravado', Pow Wow Wild Berry, and Primadonna White plants that I started from seed last year, have made it through the winter! The Bravado look especially vigorous and are much larger than the others.

I planted primadonna white last year and it did quite well.

Echinacea 'Hot Summer' is not a seed variety. You will not get this plant from any seeds. Thompson Morgan has a seed variety with a similar name but it is a dud. None of the blooms were any color other than pink out of two packets I tried.

I would try Gaillardias if you have trouble with these hybrid Echinaceas. There are seed varieties of those that give a similar look and they bloom longer and fuller. I'm planting yellow, tangerine and red this year. You can't go wrong with those!