Lovely! Always a favorite, annual or perennial - the wild ones as well as the domestic. Those look very healthy.

Awesome !!! Thanks for sharing.

Although they are similar I prefer Gilliardia over Rudbeckia. I have grown both and while both are a lovely addition to any garden I like the different color combinations available in Gilliardia varieties.

Lovely pics though

And I prefer zinnias over Gaillardias. But I am working on a strain of zinnias that looks like some Gaillardias, the Razzle Dazzles.

Oh, ZM - you show off. :) OK, just for that, I'm posting my special spoonbill rudbeckia pic. What do you think about this wild rudbeckia, Minnesota gal? It just showed up in my backyard this year:

- Alex

Ooh, I love that zinnia, zen_man. This is the time of year I ask myself why I didn't plant zinnias this spring. After this hot spell breaks I will go to my favorite nursery to see what they offer.

I have grown gaillardia and used the Burgundy as well as the burgundy/red double in a few beds. One spring all the gaillardias in all my beds did not return.

These rudbeckia only need occasional deadheading. Took me a while to get used to their bright colors as most of my plants tend to be pastels. That spoonbill variety is lovely. What a nice surprise.

I generally prefer the pastels, also. But, there are so many fantastic, lush yellows and reds that I can't resist all of them. So, I dedicated one side of my driveway gardens to purples etc. and the other side to yellows and reds. Now, as things self seed and spread to where they are happy, I'm getting a bit of a mixture. And that's OK, since I garden for the pollinators and they don't care how things are organized.

Martha

I did the brightly colored blooms thing in my early years of gardening. Now I am starting to get bored with the pastels and one side of my driveway is also becoming more red but have resisted yellow/orange. Think this fall I will scatter some of the rudbeckia seeds in that bed.

Including plants for pollinators has always been part of my gardens. Gardening is a way for me to use my farming jeans (pun intended). The vegetable gardens are for production of fresh produce only while the rest is for experimenting. If I were going to be here longer I think I would tear out most of my plants and start over with the bold colors. Including lots of zinnias!

Sounds like my garden. In The Beginning (cue the music), I did vegetables. I had the honor and pleasure of being schooled in the art by my 86 year old landlady back in New Mexico some 30 odd years ago.

Now I do flowers as well; the veggies are taking second seat.

- Alex