"So I began watering it every day" This is your most likely problem. They hate wet roots, they need oxygen reaching the roots more-so than many plants. If you're watering because you see drooping...wait until the sun goes down for a little while and check the plant response. Many plants will intentionally wilt (even with enough soil moisture) when it's intensely hot in order to expose less surface area to the sun (in order to conserve water being respirated off the leaves as well as preventing actual leaf damage/burn). If the plant is still wilted after the sun is no longer beating down it probably needs a bit of water.

i heard and tried (the paper towel method of starting seeds), and it worked like magic.i use it for the seeds that i have problems with including purple coneflowers and gaillardia.cuts down on germination time.i then take the sprouted seeds and then put them in pots. let me know how you make out.

That's pretty late for a coneflower to bloom but whatever the reason, be glad they bloomed. Might be the watering issue--they're prairie plants and tend to thrive on whatever moisture Ma Nature doles or doesn't dole out. I've never watered mine and they're thriving 3 years down the road. My neighbor has had a butterfly garden filled with them for more years than I've lived here and she's never watered it. The coneflowers have thrived. Yes we're a zone warmer than you but Echinacea/coneflower is mostly rated to Z6 so you should be okay unless you plant some of the fancy hybrid cultivars. I recommend you do your research on the perennials you plant and get acquainted with their needs. Chances are you'll be surprised. They honestly need quite a bit less help from you than you might think. Happy gardening!

Hi Ken My problem is that I have a variety of rudbeckia echinacea monarda back there. I know one was a purple coneflower. That's the one I want in that spot and I was hoping to remove anything else before they get large. The color of the coneflower is not what's so important but the plant . I recognize the monarda. But the others not so much.