The Cone flower - Rudbekia species, is one of the late summers great flowering plant families. At a time of year when most plants are spending their time producing seeds, the cone flower family is up there with the best of them producing large, long lasting flowers that are as colourful as anything produced in the spring.
Rudbeckia is a plant genus of 23 species, all of which are native to North America.
Perhaps the most popular species is Rudbeckia hirta, also known as the Black-eyed-susan.
There are a number of fantastic cultivated varieties ranging both in colour and height, and producing bold colours blooms up to 5 inches across!
The name was given by Carolus Linnaeus (the father of our modern system of classification) in honor of his teacher at Uppsala University, Professor Olof Rudbeck the Younger (1660-1740), and his father, Professor Olof Rudbeck the Elder (1630-1702), both of whom were botanists.
Luckily for us Rudbeckias will grow in any well-cultivated and well-drained soil. they prefer an open and sunny site, but some taller species may require staking in exposed conditions.Plant Rudbeckias in October, March or April, but if your soil is particularly dry then you can mulch with peat or well-rotted manures early in the spring unless you want to reduce the height of the taller species
The flowers appear from August to October and are produced in daisy-like inflorescences, with yellow or orange florets arranged in a prominent, cone-shaped head.
It is this arrangement that has brought about its common name of the cone flower.
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