Campfire Rudbeckia
Vigorous bright-ember blooms.
A golden rudbeckia with painterly dark markings on some petals reminiscent of the light and shadow cast around a campfire. Blackbird Rise Farm, where these seeds are collected, got its name from the red-winged blackbirds that visit the wildflowers of Maine. This rudbeckia showed up in the meadows surrounding the farm and exists at the intersection of wild and cultivated, annual and perennial, field and farm. We love how these bright golden petals dramatically shift to burnt sienna evoking the saying by Ursula Le Guin: "When you light a candle, you also cast a shadow."
Rudbeckias are cheery, generally fuss-free perennials that compete well with weeds and easily adapt to a variety of garden conditions.
To learn more about the artist Lucy Nguyen and this seed story's fascinating non-binary botany, read the Pack Art Back Story here.
Growing Instructions:
Direct sow any time of year or start indoors in late winter or early spring. Rudbeckias are hardy plants and compete fairly well with weeds once established, but they'll need cultivation when young. They are not fussy about soil but need reasonable drainage. Plant somewhere where their bursting-forth mid-summer joy can be fully appreciated.