Skip to main content

NC State Extension

Echinacea Research Project at NC State

en Español / em Português
Español

El inglés es el idioma de control de esta página. En la medida en que haya algún conflicto entre la traducción al inglés y la traducción, el inglés prevalece.

Al hacer clic en el enlace de traducción se activa un servicio de traducción gratuito para convertir la página al español. Al igual que con cualquier traducción por Internet, la conversión no es sensible al contexto y puede que no traduzca el texto en su significado original. NC State Extension no garantiza la exactitud del texto traducido. Por favor, tenga en cuenta que algunas aplicaciones y/o servicios pueden no funcionar como se espera cuando se traducen.


Português

Inglês é o idioma de controle desta página. Na medida que haja algum conflito entre o texto original em Inglês e a tradução, o Inglês prevalece.

Ao clicar no link de tradução, um serviço gratuito de tradução será ativado para converter a página para o Português. Como em qualquer tradução pela internet, a conversão não é sensivel ao contexto e pode não ocorrer a tradução para o significado orginal. O serviço de Extensão da Carolina do Norte (NC State Extension) não garante a exatidão do texto traduzido. Por favor, observe que algumas funções ou serviços podem não funcionar como esperado após a tradução.


English

English is the controlling language of this page. To the extent there is any conflict between the English text and the translation, English controls.

Clicking on the translation link activates a free translation service to convert the page to Spanish. As with any Internet translation, the conversion is not context-sensitive and may not translate the text to its original meaning. NC State Extension does not guarantee the accuracy of the translated text. Please note that some applications and/or services may not function as expected when translated.

Collapse ▲

5/11/2022 – This project was conducted in 2012-2014.

Lijing Zhou, Postdoc, Jennifer Crumley, Graduate Student, Jeanine Davis, Project Leader, Associate Professor and Extension Specialist, John Balles, Sr. Research Scientist

North Carolina State University, Department of Horticultural Science, Raleigh, NC

Nutrition Product Development, Amway/Nutrilite Corporation , Lakeview, CA

top harvest kellyFlowers

Jenn again

Project Overview

Echinacea was traditionally used by Native American tribes to treat snake bites, sore throats, and toothaches, among other uses. Now it is primarily used as an immune system enhancer to reduce the length or severity of cold and flu symptoms, and to support the lymphatic and respiratory systems. It is also valued for its antibacterial and antiviral properties (http://www.webmd.com). Echinacea is one of the most commonly used medicinal herbs in U.S. and makes up as much as 10% of the herbal market. The tops and roots of these plants are used in a wide variety of commercially available natural botanical products. It is primarily used as an immune enhancer to reduce the length or severity of cold symptoms and is also used for its antibacterial and antiviral properties in recent years (http://www.webmd.com). Echinacea species are considered the most commonly used medicinal herbs in U.S. and make up as much as 10% of herbal market due to high demand. The tops and roots of these plants are used in a wide variety of commerically available natural botanical products (http://www.manitoba.ca).

There is interest in producing more Echinacea in North America. As such, we wanted to compare production in different areas. Two three-year field trials were initiated in 2012 in the southern mountains (Mills River) and upper piedmont (Reidsville) regions of North Carolina to determine the effects of location on growth and chemical composition of six sources of Echinacea purpurea and Echinacea angustifolia (five from commercial seed companies and one from a private commercial herb farm). A similar study was conducted by Amway in Washington State so we evaluate whether growing these species in different parts of the country and using different seed sources affects the composition of the final product. At each location there are two studies, one for each species. Each study is a split- plot design with harvest years as the main plots and seed sources as the subplots. Data are being collected on growth stage, plant vigor, plant height, flowering date, number of flowers, top and root dry weight in each year, and chemical composition of the roots of both species and tops of E. purpurea.

In addition to funding the research studies, Amway/Nutrilite is supporting the education of a graduate student. Jennifer Crumley (shown above), is working on her Master’s Degree. She is expected to graduate in December, 2014. The knowledge she gained both in the classroom and in the field will prove beneficial as she pursues a career in plant sciences.

Acknowledgement

We gratefully acknowledge Nutrilite for the funds supporting these studies.

Links: