Prairie Plant Profile #2 – Brown-eyed Susan

Brown-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia triloba, is a tall, multi-branched perennial in my prairie. At the end of June or beginning of July the plants are covered in bright orange-yellow flowers with dark brown centers. After the initial flush of flowers, Brown-eyed Susan sporadically produces a few more flowers for the next couple of months. The flowers attract butterflies, bees, and other pollinators.

You may be able to extend the blooming by dead heading the spent flowers, but I usually leave them for interest in the winter landscape. Additionally, birds may feed on the seed heads. But be careful about leaving the seed heads on the plants. You may have little Brown-eyed Susan plants all over the place in the spring.

My plants usually grow between 3 and 5 feet tall depending on age and planting location. Brown-eyed Susan grows in full sun, but they can also adapt to a fair amount of shade. Brown-eyed Susan is drought tolerant, but appreciates a little water to prevent wilting in the afternoon heat. A little shade in the afternoon will help with the wilting too.

By comparison, the more common Black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia fulgida ‘Goldsturm’, on the left in this photo, is a shorter plant and has larger flowers than Brown-eyed Susan.

Both the Brown-eyed Susan and the Black-eyed Susan are great sources of summer color after the spring flowers have faded.

Prairie Fireworks

Who needs fireworks for Independence Day when prairie flowers are just as dazzling?

My prairie flowers are coming out of a semi-dormant state due to drought and they are beginning to put on quite a show. Before last week’s rains, my prairie had not seen much water in several weeks. Thanks to Hurricane Alex and other storm systems, my prairie received several inches of rain.

Enjoy the prairie “flowerworks” show.

Indian Blanket, Gaillardia pulchella

Prairie Verbena, Verbena bipinnatifida

Gregg's Mistflower, Conoclinium greggii

Turk's Cap, Malvaviscus arboreus var. Drummondii

Bee Brush, Aloysia gratissima

Lemon Horsemint, Monarda citriodora

Frogfruit, Phyla nodiflora

Cowpen Daisy, Verbesina encelioides

Standing Cypress, Ipomopsis rubra

Green Milkweed, Asclepias viridis

Mexican Bird of Paradise. Caesalpinia gilliesii

(native to Argentina)

Black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia fulgida

Black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia fulgida

Happy Fourth of July from the Plano Prairie Garden!

Prairie Plant Profile #1 - Big Red Sage

This is the first of a monthly (hopefully) feature where I profile a plant in my prairie. Each month I will photograph and describe a plant from my garden that is of particular interest at the time. For the sake of alliteration and the opportunity to show I know and can even spell a five syllable word, I will call the post Prairie Plant Profile.

Big red sage, Salvia penstemonoides, is the subject of my first profile. This Texas native perennial was once thought to be extinct, but was rediscovered in the 1980s and is now regularly available at native plant sales and nurseries that specialize in natives.

Big red sage has simple, elongated, glossy leaves that look similar to the leaves of a penstemon, which is how it gets its botanical name and the alternate common name, penstemon sage. The plant grows about three feet tall, with most of that height being from the flower stalk. The flowers are purplish red and very attractive to hummingbirds, as are most other salvias. Big red sage grows in full sun or with some afternoon shade. My plants are drought tolerant, but appreciate an occasional soaking. The lower leaves of my plants sometimes turn yellow and die—maybe from getting too dry. My plants start blooming in June and continue blooming into November. You can cut the flower stalks back to the rosette after the plant stops blooming, but I leave the stalks on mine long enough to set some seeds. I usually find a couple of volunteer seedlings each spring, so it is not an aggressive re-seeder.

Plant some big red sage in your garden. It is a great tall accent flower and attracts hummingbirds.