Herbal KnowledgeFeb 2, 2022
Though we try not to play favorites with herbs, we have a special place in our hearts for Echinacea. With vibrant, purplish-pink flowers and an incredible history, Echinacea purpurea has been part of herbalism for centuries. First found in the eastern and central United States, Echinacea was commonly used by Native Americans, who introduced it to the pioneers. It was incredibly popular among the Eclectics of the 19th century and remains popular today.
Echinacea is a foundational immune system herb that provides complex, deep system support over both the short and long term, and is the star ingredient in our best-selling Super Echinacea®. When you take it, you’ll notice a deep, earthy taste followed by a tingling mouthfeel due to naturally occurring alkylamides.*
Our Super Echinacea features four parts: roots, seeds, flowers and leaves of Certified Organic Echinacea purpurea plants that are grown on our Regenerative Organic Certified® farms in southern Oregon. These plant parts come from three harvests that take place during two seasons.
There is no “one size fits all” in nature, that’s why each plant part is extracted when its constituents are at their peak according to its unique biochemical profile, and then blended. Some plants can even take up to four years to grow. It’s more work to do it this way, but the resulting product is worth the extra effort, coordinated harvest, and extraction schedule.
On our farms, we replant Echinacea every spring. This ensures that we have about four rotating crops, and a mature root crop annually. After one year, we harvest the leaf and flower of some of our Echinacea plants when they are at their peak in summer. We always leave some in the field to ensure the roots continue to thrive and that we have a source for seeds.
Echinacea has a fresh, green scent that we associate with summer— your nose can tell when Echinacea harvest time is approaching.
Why summer? This is the time of year when the plant is devoting more of its energy to its leaves and flowers, and the desired phytochemicals in these parts are at their peak.
During harvest our farm crew and interns cut down the Echinacea plants, leaving some of the stems behind. The cut flowers are collected and bundled, then loaded into a wagon.
One wagonload at a time, the Echinacea heads to the barn, where we strip the leaves and flowers from the stems. Echinacea is not a plant that can be dried and stored for a long time, so it’s important that we immediately transport our fresh Echinacea harvests from the farm to our facility for quality testing and extraction.
The Echinacea leaves and flowers are extracted, then they wait for the rest of the plant parts to be ready. Once we’ve blended the Echinacea with it's alcohol menstruum it becomes stable, allowing us to wait until the plant’s other parts are harvested before combining the extracts.
In the fall, once the days have cooled off and the flower heads have gone to seed, we harvest them. We use some in our extracts and save others to plant for future crops. The fields aren’t as photogenic by this time of the year, but their yield is equally important as that summer harvest. After we collect the seed heads to dry, they are processed by removing the seeds and separating them from their chaff.
Why fall? This is the time of year when the seeds have fully developed, and it’s when the plant directs its energy to its roots, in preparation for a season of rest.
Around the same time as seed harvest we also harvest mature Echinacea roots, leaving other fields to continue to grow another year. Echinacea root harvests start with the help of a tractor, which loosens the large root balls. Then our interns and farmers unearth the roots and remove as much of the dirt as possible. A wagon stands by, ready to take the fresh Echinacea roots to the barn.
When the roots arrive at the barn, they are thoroughly washed. Like the seeds, leaves and flowers, they then head to the lab for testing and then go to our processing facility to be extracted.
What about Echinacea stems, you ask? We don’t use them in our herbal products, but we never waste them. Echinacea stems are composted so they can help nourish our next generation of plants.
Once we have extracted all the different parts of Echinacea, we are ready to make Super Echinacea®, combining the individual extracts into our proprietary blend. And that’s it — from seed to shelf, the life cycle of Super Echinacea®.
Four parts, three harvests, two seasons, one plant!
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