I'm growing Orange Meadowbrite and Razzmatazz. Last year was their first full season after being planted the previous fall. Both bloomed fairly well but seemed to get started flowering a bit later than I had hoped. Not much fragrance, and neither one got as tall as Magnus although Magnus is a much older plant.

Larry

I've had the 'new' Meadowbrites for 4 years. They're lovely, and the colors very clear and bright, but their stems are so fragile they flop immediately.

Now, let me rave about the Big Sky series. I have 'Sundown' 'Sunset' and have picked up 'Sunrise' for accent.

THESE ARE GORGEOUS. Their stems are so sturdy! They hit about 2' tall, with very large, beautifully SCENTED flowers. They bloomed all summer. Now, once they were fully grown, they fell over, but as an entire shrub-like bunch. I put a peony ring around them and back upright they went.

The Meadowbrites underneath them acting as a ground cover.

I also LOVE 'White Swan' which I've divided and planted in and out of the Big Sky group, and into other gardens where white makes everything more vivid.

I LOVE the Big Sky group.

Next time I'll tell you how I really feel,
Christine

I "splurged" on the Meadowbrite when it first came out paying full price which is a big deal for me. It was leggy, weak and it did not come back in my bed. The Big SKy I got last season and it just seemed healthier. Also I didn't even see the Meadowbrite series for sale at nurseries last year?

Razzmatazz I don't own but from working at the nursery it just seems so top heavy that you would have to have some support with it.

Fragrant Angel is white and it is fragrant but not from a distance like say nicotiana is.

Kathleen

Christine,
What kind of (sun, soil) conditions are your Big Skies in? Do you fertilize or add amendments? They sound lovely.
Tabby

I am 24 hours of incredibly hot, never-ending sun.
The Big Sky and the Meadowbrites are in a raised bed that was made of brought-in top soil mixed with an equal amount of leaf compost, topped with a healthy layer of hardwood mulch.

I have complained about this a lot, but I'm not exaggerating when I tell you I get extremely little rain. I am in a "atmospheric trough" which creates a microcosm around 3 houses on my road. And probaby in front and in back of us, but those are fields.

My neighbors can have a HUGE, tree-bashing thunderstorm and I get nothing except their run-off. I can turn off Route 50, Rte 214 or Rte 301 at any given storm and literally drive OUT of the rain. So my rainfall is negligable.

I don't water much at all, and these did really, really well. I don't fertilize, either.

I bought mine last year in the fall, and 2 more this fall. They had the opportunity to overwinter and establish nice roots, which I do think helps.

I highly recommend them. Their fragrence is really lovely, and their big ol' heads are gorgeous. Of course, if you get your nose too close to them, their seed centers will POKE YOU!

Hardly something to com plain about. :)

Christine

I picked up a single "Sunrise" plant last spring and have been growing it on my south-facing, 3rd floor balcony in full-sun near a "Magnus" coneflower I bought a few years ago. Thus far, I am very impressed with "Sunrise." Even though this was its first year, it still grew about as big as the "Magnus" coneflower (3+ feet tall with nice spread) and put out almost as many flowers (over a dozen throughout the season). The flowers are big, creamy-yellow fading to pale yellow-white after a lot of sun, and they have a yellow-green center vs. the golden-bronze center of "Magnus." Both coneflowers are free of pests or other problems. Since it is an exposed balcony on the 3rd floor, windy summer storms can sometimes knock the flowers over, but a gentle shake frees the extra water from the flowers, and they can generally be restored to upright without too much work.

The last remaining question is cold-hardiness of "Sunrise" since this is its first winter. It has been a strange one, with warmth early on, and now bitter cold. I assume that both plants will be fine since they are adapted to the frozen high Plains states, but we'll see.

So, I'd recommened the Big Sky series based upon my experiences.

I just want to thank everyone for sending feedback on the new echinacea cultivars. it was a real help in writing my article.
Pegwrite