Gloriosa Daisy, Black-Eyed Susan, Brown-Eyed Susan, Etc, Etc.

Rudbeckia hirta ‘Denver Daisy’

rud-BEK-ee-ah HER-tuh

Rudbeckia hirta L. is the accepted scientific name for this species of Rudbeckia. Both the genus and species were named and described as such by Carl von Linnaeus in the second volume of the first edition of Species Plantarum in 1753.

As of 12-3-23 when this page was last updated, Plants of the World Online lists 30 species in the Rudbeckia genus. Rudbeckia is a member of the plant family Asteraceae with 1,702 genera. Those numbers could change as updates are made on POWO. The number of genera in the family fluctuates often.

THERE ARE A FEW LINKS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE FOR FURTHER READING.

This Black-Eyed Susan cultivar was bred by crossing native Rudbeckia hirta with Rudbeckia ‘Prairie Sun’ by Ernst Benary Seeds to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Denver, Colorado.

I brought three Rudbeckia hirta ‘Denver Daisy’ home to add to the south bed I completely worked over in 2017. I found them at Wagler’s Greenhouse on 7-1-17, among other plants, while I was looking for plants specifically for the south bed.

I always transplanted seedlings from the Celosia argentea ‘Cramer’s Amazon along the wall and seedlings of the Talinum paniculatum (Jewels of Opar) for the front of the bed. There are two Crape Myrtle in this bed which I would like to pull out because they get so big. In 2017, I kept their sprouts cut off and after a while, they stopped coming up. Of course, they will be back in 2018. In 2017 I also transplanted seedlings of the Marigold ‘Brocade’ along the front of the bed… The plants I bought from Wagler’s were put in the center row. As always, the Celosia ‘Cramer’s Amazon’ grew 8-9 feet tall, but the Marigold ‘Brocade’ grew larger in this bed than where they usually are. Maybe amending the soil with decomposed cow manure was the reason. Anyway, I will limit the amount of Marigolds I transplant here in 2018. They always self-sow, so that could be a problem…

Rudbeckia hirta is a native wildflower in most of the United States and there is an abundant supply on the farm. They are very drought tolerant, but cultivars planted in flower beds appreciate a little extra water off and on. You for sure have to water them until they get well established.

They like the sun and if you plant them early enough they have no problems once the heat of the summer arrives. If you plant them later, you may want to put them somewhere they will receive afternoon shade.

USEFUL INFORMATION:
Family: Asteraceae (Compositae).
Origin: Cultivar from Binary Seeds.
Zones: USDA Zones 5a-9b (-20 to 25° F).
Size: 18-20” tall x 12-18” wide.
Light: Sun to part shade.
Soil: Average, well-drained soil.
Water: Average. Drought tolerant once established.
Maintenance: Deadhead for continual flowering.

With the Celosia spicata ‘Cramer’s Amazon behind them and Jewels of Opar and Marigold ‘Brocade’ in front of them, the Rudbeckia ‘Denver Daisy’ almost became covered up. I had to do some trimming so they wouldn’t completely disappear.

<<<<2018>>>>

I was happy to see the Rudbeckia hirta ‘Denver Daisy’ had self-sown for 2018. Now there are a lot more than just 3 plants.

The Rudbeckia hirta ‘Denver Daisy’ was looking very good when the above photo was taken on June 14 (2018). The few single-flowered plants are our native Rudbeckia hirta, the Black-Eyed Susan. They come up here and there and I just let them grow.

Most of the flowers were single’s and looked very similar. This one plant, however, produced doubles…

Some of the flowers are a little darker gold and maroon.

Some of the flower petals were about half and half gold and maroon.

Going strong when the above photo was taken on 7-4-18.

The Rudbeckia hirta ‘Denver Daisy’ was beginning to wind down by mid-August. The above photo shows a few more different shades

The Rudbeckia hirta ‘Denver Daisy’ was a great performer and flowered until the temps started getting colder.

<<<<2019>>>>

Well, it is May 31 when I am updating this page and so far I haven’t seen any of the Rudbeckia hirta ‘Denver Daisy come up. I am still hoping a few will come up or I will have to see if any are available at one of the local greenhouses.

There are numerous cultivars of Rudbeckia hirta you can try and they are available at garden centers and many sources online.

I hope you enjoyed this page and maybe found it useful. If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, I would like to hear from you. Please click on “like” if you visited this page. It helps us bloggers stay motivated. 🙂 You can check out the links below for further reading. The links take you directly to the genus and species of this plant.

FOR FURTHER READING:
PLANTS OF THE WORLD ONLINE (GENUS/SPECIES)
WIKIPEDIA (GENUS/SPECIES)
THE NATIONAL GARDENING ASSOCIATION
DAVE’S GARDEN
PERENNIALS.COM