bull's eye

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At first glance, you look at purple coneflower and think, “Oh goodness, another composite.”

And rightly so, the composite or Asteraceae family is one of the most successful lifeform groups on earth—daisies, asters, sunflowers, et cetera—the list is a long one. According to the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew, the botanical family comprises more than 1,600 genera and 23,000 species. Many look alike. Jeez, do they look alike, a circular disk of sex organs surrounded by a ring of showy petals. For an incoming pollinator, it's a bull's eye.

Composites are so common, and in many cases, so hard to identify, why bother? But purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is an exception. The flowers themselves are large and magnificent. As the seed head begins to swell, the petals slowly lose their color and droop, forming an umbrella shape, past their prime.

Echinacea purpurea has long been a component of an herbal doctor’s medicine bag, commonly believed to stimulate the immune system.

The flower is now in bloom at Ijams Nature Center and the UT Gardens.

-Photo taken at UT Gardens.

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