Developing Medicinally Used Echinacea Cultivars by Intra- and Inter-Species Hybridization

Cultivation of Echinacea has gained worldwide interest in recent years due to its non-specific immunomodulotary activity in humans. It was the top-selling medicinal herb in 2001 and has remained among the top five best-selling herbs for over five years. However, the Echinacea species has not been genetically improved for medicinal use. Current cultivated types of Echinacea were originated from pooled, non-selected seeds from wild sources and therefore are less productive and low in quality. The purpose of this study is to develop Echinacea cultivars which have high biomass yield and high levels of boactive constituents.