Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: PPA announces their Perennial of the Year 2023
The Perennial Plant Association has named their choice for Perennial of the Year 2023. First, who IS PPA? They are a trade association composed of growers, retailers, landscape designers and contractors, educators, and other professionals in the perennial industry.
Their selection is a pollinator magnet. Rudbeckia ‘American Gold Rush’ is a compact black-eyed Susan.
Just 24 inches tall but with a width over 3 ft., it’s packed with a long season of blooms. This is the PPA’s description:At the height of summer, ‘American Gold Rush’ turns up the volume for a long season of dazzling color right up to autumnal frosts. The bright golden-yellow flowers feature arching rays and a reddish halo surrounding dark chocolate cones. The green leaves and stems are covered in hairs, which gives them a silvery cast.
They’re also resistant to septoria leaf spot! But wait, there’s more! As mentioned, butterflies LOVE the blooms and songbirds feast on the seed long after the flowers have passed. The seedheads also provide winter interest. This plant is hardy to zone 4, does best in full sun to part shade and average soils. It’s adaptable to clay soil, bonus! Cut it back in late winter or early spring.
Once established, ‘American Gold Rush’ has good heat and drought tolerance too.
This plant is a 2020 AAS winner and the National Garden Bureau has named 2023 the Year of Rudbeckia for their perennial class.
Take a look at some of these companions:
- alliums
- asters
- sages
- native grasses – Little bluestem and Prairie Dropseed come to mind
