Common Name: sunfacing coneflower
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Asteraceae
Native Range: Virginia to Alabama
Zone: 7 to 8
Height: 2.00 to 4.00 feet
Spread: 2.00 to 4.00 feet
Bloom Time: August to September
Bloom Description: Yellow ray florets surrounding dark purple-brown center disc
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Maintenance: Low
Suggested Use: Naturalize
Flower: Showy
Tolerate: Shallow-Rocky Soil
Culture
Best grown in evenly moist, well-draining soils in full sun to part shade. Hardy in Zones 7-8.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Rudbeckia heliopsidis, commonly called sunfacing coneflower, pineywoods coneflower, or Little River black-eyed Susan, is a herbaceous perennial with a scattered distribution in the southern Appalachian Mountains and the Southern Coastal Plain of the southeastern United States. It is typically found growing on rocky streambanks, barrens, and outcrops, openings in pinelands, and roadside swales. Mature plants will reach 2-4' tall and slowly spread by underground rhizomes to fill a similar area. The serrated leaves are mostly elliptic but can be variable in shape and will reach 4-8" long and 0.75-2" wide. The composite flower heads are made up of a rounded, dark purple-brown center disc surrounded by 6-12 yellow ray florets. The main bloom period occurs from mid-summer to early fall.
Genus name honors Olof Rudbeck (1630-1702) Swedish botanist and founder of the Uppsala Botanic Garden in Sweden where Carl Linnaeus was professor of botany.
The specific epithet heliopsidis refers to the similar appearance of the flower heads of this species to Heliopsis laevis (a synonym of Bidens laevis), though the color of the central disc is dark purple-brown rather than yellow.
The common names of this species variously refer to its growth habit, preferred habitat, and native range.
Problems
No known pest or disease problems of note. This relatively rare species may be difficult to source. Be sure to purchase plants from reputable nurseries that do not collect from the wild.
Uses
Mixed borders, rock gardens, woodland edges, native gardens.