Its not quite that simple. I will give it my best shot just to see how well I know this...please audience correct my mistakes as I dont want to go on being misinformed and telling others incorrectly. Anyways here is my life lessons learned on echinacea.

Its first of all a very striking handsome plant. All parts of the plant are used, however the greatest concentration is to be in the roots and to be harvested in the late fall when after the plant has become dormant and roots are at their juiciest and richest. Its in the fall, as you would dandelion roots for tea prepare. clean roots from soil, lay on stainless cookie pan and bake on low for 1 hour to 4 hours.

When roasting coffee the green beans are roasted to the flavour of desire, light, medium or roasted longer until it becomes french or italian roast...Hmmm smells so good. This does not effect the caffiene content (coffee) as one would think of dark roast to be stronger and flavor as well as caffiene content.

The healthy nutirents become compromise the darker the brew, so roast/heat on to dry-out or if possible air dry. Now since I have never actually done it and only have read and discussed it with others over the years. There is no praxis here!

Confession! a number of years back a long story but anyways slug bait (toxic type) was dumped into my garden one season unbeknown to me. When I saw some girls applying toxic slug bait on top of my echinacea beds, well...I havent been able to bring myself to eat or use from that area to experiment and try it. I did start a new echinacea in a clean garden elsewhere, so I am anxious to try it for this year!

The use of echinacea is interesting...dont get into a habit of a continual brew or as a food type beverage such as other herbs, due to the fact that the ability to wake up the immune system to toughen up becomes inaffective or doesnt work at all if you get too use to drinking it.

SO the tea should not be taken any longer than 2 week intervals and then used on the first onset of compromised health issues ( yes I know, if what you are eating is poor in nutrition, well, you need to be responsible for good nutrition - meaning uncompromised food. that would be food grown less the poisons in them, or just remove all the harmful ones and then stay away from food which has been depleted of its vitamins and life, It is important to keep the diet fresh with clean water.

In a sense one should keep stress to a minimum as well, very taxing on the body and brain to be anxious/stressed, try to take safe guards to avoid those spaces.

Eat well, drink clean water at least once a day, eat more live-raw vegetabels or fruit than artifical things- whyare you bothering to put artifical into your body?! What is the gain after consumed?

So, if you truely want echinacea to do its job, then you need to get all the manure out of the cart (yourself)in order to push it up the steep hill( to continue living in this life healthy and strong) to let the kids play in( so you can garden for all your days)!

Cheers-

It is important to choose the correct species, too. Different preparations use one, two or all three of the medicinal species. You should know which one(s) you are growing: Echinacea angustifolia, E. pallida, or E. purpurea. E. purpurea is the most common garden one, the Purple Coneflower.

Here is a link that might be useful: Echinacea