Rainbow Marcella Coneflower
Pretty flowers with intense orange, pink, and raspberry blooms.
Echinacea ‘Rainbow Marcella’ is a small coneflower cultivar from the Butterfly™ echinacea series, growing 18 inches tall and 18-24 inches wide in zones 4-9. As the name suggests, it’s a butterfly magnet, attracting butterflies as well as bees and other pollinating insects when in bloom from June until August. This herbaceous perennial flowers with single blooms of saturated orange, raspberry, coral and pink colors which change as the season progresses, becoming deeper and richer shades of pink. When blooming ends in late summer, flowers dry on the plants and become wintertime food for the birds.
Coneflowers like moist, well-draining soil and will become more tolerant of drought once established. Rainbow Marcella does best in full sun; in partial shade, flowering diminishes and colors fade. Echinacea cultivars tend to be somewhat short-lived (less than 10 years) and should be treated as a short-term perennial to enjoy for a few seasons, then replaced with something else. Though not a favorite, deer will occasionally browse echinacea. Rutgers University rates echinacea as “seldom severely damaged” on their list of Landscape Plants Rated by Deer Resistance.
A pondside planting of Rainbow Marcella coneflower (Echinacea Butterfly™’Rainbow Marcella’).
How to Plant and Grow Rainbow Marcella Coneflower
A Silver-spotted Skipper butterfly sips nectar from an echinacea flower (Echinacea Butterfly™ ‘Rainbow Marcella’)
Sunlight: Rainbow Marcella coneflower thrives in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight per day); any less than this reduces the amount of flowers and cause the colors to wash out. If you are looking for a coneflower for partial shade, choose the original straight species of coneflower, Echinacea purpurea.
Soil: Plant in moist, well-draining soil. Good drainage is crucial to prevent root rot. Coneflower is adaptable to most soil types, but will not tolerate wet, soggy soil.
Watering: Keep the soil consistently moist during the first growing season to help establish the plants. Once established, they are relatively drought-tolerant, but regular watering may still be needed (for watering guidance, see “How to Water your Plants”).
Spacing: Rainbow Marcella coneflowers should be spaced 18 to 24 inches on center (18-24 inches from the center of one plant to the center of the next plant). Try this handy plant calculator to determine the number of plants required for your garden.
Mulching: Apply a layer of organic mulch around the plants to retain moisture, suppress weeds, and moderate soil temperature.
Fertilizing: Coneflowers generally do not require fertilization. Applying a layer of compost around the plants, in springtime, will enrich the soil structure, improve drainage, and support plant health.
Landscape Design Ideas for Rainbow Marcella Coneflower
In this display from the 2022 Philadelphia Flower Show, Rainbow Marcella Coneflower is combined with grasses and perennials to create a colorful, textured tapestry.
Mixed Perennial Border: Create a mixed border using Rainbow Marcella coneflowers along with other perennial flowers, such as creeping phlox, salvia, and stonecrop. This design offers a dynamic and ever-changing display throughout the seasons.
Butterfly and Pollinator Garden: Design a garden specifically to attract butterflies and pollinators by planting Rainbow Marcella coneflowers alongside other nectar-rich plants like bee balm (Monarda), Joe Pye Weed, and summersweet clethra. (for more information about planning a butterfly garden, see “5 Low-maintenance Butterfly Host Plants”) and “5 Essential Nectar Plants for Your Garden”).
Stylized Meadow or Prairie Garden: Create a naturalized look by massing Rainbow Marcella coneflowers with grasses like switchgrass (Panicum species) or blue fescue, and other flowers like the large cabbage-leaf coneflower, Rudbeckia maxima.
Container Planting: Place potted Rainbow Marcella coneflowers on sunny front porches, patios, decks, or along pathways for a burst of color.
Companion Planting with Shrubs: Pair Rainbow Marcella coneflowers with evergreen shrubs like boxwoods (Buxus species), cherry laurels (Prunus laurocerasus cultivars), or dwarf Japanese cedar for a sophisticated style with year round visual interest and structure.
Planting Companions for Rainbow Marcella Coneflower
Moonshine Yarrow (Achillea x ‘Moonshine’)
Firefly Peach Sky Yarrow (Achillea x ‘Firefly Peach Sky’)
Hubricht’s Bluestar (Amsonia hubrichtii)
Heavy Metal Blue Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum ‘Heavy Metal’)
Autumn Fire Stonecrop (Sedum telephium ‘Autumn Fire’)
Blazing Star (Liatris spicata)
Hummelo Betony (Stachys officianalis ‘Hummelo’)
Hidcote English Lavender (Lavandula ‘Hidcote Blue’)
Peachie Keen Anise Hyssop (Agastache ‘Peachie Keen’)
Helen Von Stein Lamb’s Ears (Stachys byzantina ‘Helen Von Stein’)
What is Wrong with My Rainbow Marcella Coneflower Plant?
Japanese beetles feed on coneflower leaves and leave behind a lacey pattern of holes, with only the leaf veins remaining. Knocking the beetles off the plant, into a soapy container of water, is an effective solution for getting rid of these unwelcome pests. Bacterial leaf spot causes brownish-black spots and wilted flowers, and can be prevented by avoiding overcrowded plantings and aiming hose spray towards the roots and soil underneath the plants, not the leaves.
Purple coneflower can also fall victim to the aster yellows disease, a plant pathogen that affects members of the Aster family (Asteraceae) and is transmitted by leafhopper insects. This fungal infection causes distorted flowers and stunted growth, and the plant becomes weak and frail. Unfortunately, there is no treatment for plants with aster yellows and infected plants should be removed immediately.
Coneflower rosette mite is a new and emerging problem for coneflowers, and the symptoms can look similar to the aster yellows. Mites living deep inside the plant feed on flowers and stems, causing stunted and distorted growth. Affected flowers should be cut off and disposed of immediately, taking care not to spread the mites to other parts of the plant or garden.