Well, I've grown a few Rudbeckia's, so I'll jump in here.

I'm assuming that you're looking for perennial, but I think that, in many cases when one wants long season bloom, sometimes an annual is the way to go.

I had Goldstrum for a while - I didn't care much for it as in my garden it seemed to struggle and the blooms weren't as large as I thought they'd be. It bloomed quite late, and it also never got more than 12" tall as I recall. It was just kind of there, not a knock your socks off plant and I either tossed it or it died its own slow death. That was a number of years ago and I've never had the desire to replace it.

An annual Rudbeckia I grew last year was Corona and although the catalogue says it gets tall, in my garden it stayed short and would be a beautiful border plant (I may grow some this year for that purpose). Nice big blooms, but not as big or floppy as Indian Summer, and really sturdy (maybe 12-15") stems. Another nice shorter one is Toto Gold.

The annual Rudbeckias just keep blooming and blooming and are quite frost tolerant. They're easy to start from seed and if started a little earlier, it's easy to have blooms from July until hard frost.

Thanks! It probably was an annual plant that I had seen, since it bloomed non-stop for as long as I can remember driving by it. I assume that I would be able to find these as bedding out plants in the spring (hopefully!), since I don't have a set up for starting plants from seed. I really think you have to have a growing light to do this, since all I can produce is lanky seedlings that are obviously reaching for more light. I think my kids (3 and 5 years old) would really love to start some plants from seed, but I'm not sure how to go about setting up a growing area in my house - I guess that is some food for thought for me.
Janet

Janet, a definite case for winter sowing!

I am wondering if the rudbeckia you were seeing was the annual one called Prairie Sun. Mine get between 18" and 2' tall..savona

I think I will try to winter sow. I've read about all of you talking about winter sowing - but I didn't really know what it was. So I googled it! That would solve my indoor problems very nicely. Holes has a variety of Rudbeckia called "spotlight" that I might try, although it doesn't say how many seeds in a package. If I winter sow, should I put the container in a sunny spot? I guess I should check out the winter sowing forum, I'm sure there is an answer for my every question!

Thanks again for all the help!
Janet

Janet, i usually keep my containers in a sunny spot until it starts getting warm, especially if it's dry. Then i move them either to the back of the house (northwest facing) or under a tree so that they don't dry out as fast.

I'd higly recommend R. "Becky". It is an annual type but flowers non-stop once it starts. It is short, I'd guestimate about 2 feet or so. Another is R. "Indian Summer". It, too, is an annual but a bit taller than Becky.

I've not had any luck at all with the new ones. Most of them are hardy just to zone 5. But I still keep buying them and losing them over and over again. Same with the echinaceas. White Swan and Magnus do well but the newer ones do not survive the first winter.... sigh....

I agree with all the suggestions of trying the "annual" forms of Rudbeckia. There are alot to choose from.

Here are a few:

Cherokee Sunset - double flowers in a mixture of colours - 1' - 2'

Maya - new for 2008 - fleuroselect winner - double golden yellow flowers - 20"

Moreno - single flowers with red centres - 1.5'

Spotlight - yellow flowers with central red markings - only 8" tall

These are all hardy annuals and should be sown indoors 1 month before last frost date.

Thanks for all the suggestions! I have bought 2 packs of "spotlight", and I was thinking about winter sowing them in April - but is that not a good idea? I could start them indoors - but it is a little tricky with the little ones that I have running around underfoot! If you all agree that winter sowing them will not work, I will start them inside.

Janet

I have had various rudbeckias in my garden for a good many years. Some survive the winter but they reseed so well that it is not a problem. Saying this I would think that winter seeding would work fine.