Rudbeckia Laciniata Photo: Peganum
HerbDoc has her own favorite giant coneflower:
Here’s another native Rudbeckia that’s stunning if you have a spot for it. Since it was given to me at a plant swap and had no tag, it took me a while to identify it.
The common name is tall or green-headed coneflower with the Latin name being Rudbeckia laciniata. The neatest thing about this particular perennial is that the lower leaves are pinnately divided into 3 – 7 irregularly lobed leaflets. They remind of giant’s hands!
The plant is said to grow 3-10 feet high, and it is easily 10 feet tall against my garage wall. The flower heads are yellow and about 4 inches wide with greenish-yellow knobs in the centers.
I’m hoping it spreads as I really love the way it looks. Unfortunately after yesterday’s heavy rains it may need some support as some of the stems fell to the ground.
Digging RI 
Gorgeous! I’m so jealous of the flowers that need full sun. I have so much shade.
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Actually CJ this one gets partial sun because the garage tends to shade it part of the day. It is enormous though! I have to admit that
I don’t pay a lot of attention to full sun, part sun tags although I am a bit more careful when plant labels say shade only. If I like it, I buy it (or in this case swap for it!) 🙂
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I soooo love these. Big, bold, beautiful, hardy and fun to grow.
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And always a conversation piece! I’m rapidly becoming a fan.
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I have one garden that is full shade, but there’s a sunflower-like plant that grows up every year since I’ve lived here. It’s sort of bushy with delicate-looking “sunflowers.” It reaches about 5 feet in a good year. Any idea what this might be?
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It could be helianthus – perennial sunflower. Look it up and see if it matches what you have – and let us know, of course…
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There is a wonderful example of this native Rudbeckia in the Native garden outside the Education Building at the Roger Williams Park Botanical Center in Providence. It’s huge and it’s native to New England. It’s nearing 7 feet!!!!
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Yes! Big and beautiful – and native. What more could we ask?
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I love Rudbeckias! And I have tons of sun in my garden for them. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this one around here; I’ll have to keep a lookout for it.
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You should be able to find this plant, Martha. It’s perfect for your zone! Just make sure you have plenty of space so it can realize its full potential.
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