Gloriosa Daisies for National Pollinator Week

I am grooving on the 'Irish Eyes' and 'Indian Summer' Black-eyed Susans I planted last month.

 Seriously, just look at that emerald green central cone on 'Irish Eyes' and you'll know one of the reason I invited it to the garden.

'Irish Eyes' with that green center

I love all the Susans and have a special place in my heart for Rudbeckia hirta and  Gloriosa Daisy varieties specifically.

'Indian Summer' displaying hairy parentage

 Rudbeckia hirta flowers have been described as course, hairy and common...You know, that makes me appreciate them more.

'Cherry Brandy' and 'Prairie Sunset'

The Gloriosas have most of the characteristics of their R hirta parent, except the flowers are three times as large and their colors are mixtures of pure yellow or bicolored, many with dark mahogany red splotches at the base of the petals.

Yes, I do love the many colorful varieties and  the big flowers, but I also love that they're all rough and tumble flowers that can take the heat and humidity of our Middle South summers and continue to bloom until frost (deadhead them).

The cats of the Silvery Checkerspot feed on the leaves and nectar at the flowers

Pretty flower faces are delightful, but, you know me, plants that are invited to Clay and Limestone also have to have good wildlife value and Gloriosa Daisies do. Butterflies, bees of all sizes, wasps, beetles and even little loper caterpillars rely on the many Susans for food, and shelter.

Plant them in your garden and sit back and watch the pollinators. I've already seen small Carpenter Bees, Green Metallic bees, Bumbles and skippers visiting the flowers to feed and/or gather pollen.

Now get your wildflower on and share a favorite or two for National Wildflower Week!
xoxogail 

PS If you want to help pollinators this week and every week of the year, then, never, ever, ever, ever, ever use pesticides. Also, make sure the plants you bring into your garden have never been treated with neonicotinoids.

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

"How many plants do you have in your garden?"

Asked Mr I.

 I paused, wondering if it was a trick question, then replied, "It looks like a lot of plants and I suppose there are, but, really, what you are seeing is a lot of the same dozen or so plants."

"Seriously?" he said with just a hint of disbelief.

"Well, maybe!" I said coyly.

Asclepias tuberosa, Echinace pallida 'Hula Dancer' and Oenothera fruticosa

How many plants do I have in my garden? I haven't a clue! Somewhere in my office are several baskets of plant tags of the many plants I've planted in the 28 years I've been gardening here~some have thrived and others have lasted just a season or two~ and I am happy to say that there are more successes than failures.

Rudbeckia hirta, R fulgida and Abelia 'Kalaidascope'

What I can tell you is that my garden is jam packed. It's grown exponentially since we built the front porch in 2003 and moved a small wildflower and day lily garden to the sunny strip along the drive.

Echinacea, Eupatorium, Bottlebrush grass and  Hemerocallis 'Hyperion'

Although, the Susan's Bed (as that sunny strip is called) is a modest size, it's much larger in my imagination and of course I buy way more wildflowers than space to plant them. I end up having to pry them into any bit of available soil.  You could say that the garden has grown larger plant by plant. 

'Little Devil' Ninebark, Asclepias tuberosa, Rudbeckia foliage, 'Ascot Rainbow' Eupatorium and 'Fireworks' Gomphrena

Right now, it's nearly impossible to do any pinching back of the late season ex-asters or to dead head any of the spent day lilies and other plants without stomping on a treasured flower or three. Many a Susan has given its life to keep the garden looking a little tamer and less like clown pants.

Gaura, Lavender and Echinacea

Maybe, it is time to survey the garden to see how many plant families are represented and get a flower head count of the various species and cultivars...I am pretty sure there are more than a "few dozen of the same plants".

Silphium perfoliatum, Hemerocallis, Liatris, Thermopsis villosa, Hibiscus 'Kopper King', Shasta Daisy, Eupatorium dubium, Ratibida pinnata, Rudbeckia maxima and Elymus hystrix

One thing is for sure,  I won't be sharing my findings with Mr I! The other day when I was heading out to a nursery with a friend, he actually said, "Why are you going to the nursery, you have plenty of plants!"

As if that were even possible.

xoxogail

Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.