Two subspecies are used by some botanists, but are regarded as illegitimate by Flora of North America (FNA) and Plants of the World Online (POWO):[4][5][6][1] The word "Echinacea" is derived from the Greek word "echinos" which means sea urchin or hedgehog; a feature that can be observed in the flower head of the plant.

[10] In Echinacea angustifolia there is greater success in pollination between mates that are at a closer proximity between one another.

Echinacea angustifolia is an herbaceous perennial plant, producing flowers and living more than two years at a time.

[6] It is recorded by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS database (PLANTS) as growing in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Manitoba, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Saskatchewan, South Dakota, Texas, Wyoming.

[6] The wildflower gardening author Claude A. Barr regarded narrow-leaved purple coneflower as, "bold, spectacular, and beautiful."

They are set upright under 2–3 centimeters of soil with controlled moisture to start new root and top growth.