Coreopsis, sometimes called, tickseed, is a highly prized plant in the perennial border. I've grown Coreopsis grandiflora, C. lanceolata, and C. verticillata. All of these have flourished in my heavy clay soils. The daisylike flowers are typically pale yellow-gold. Some cultivars look almost like miniature, golden carnations because they are double-petaled. C. Grandiflora and C. lanceolata both have basal leaves which are different shaped from the leaves found on the upper portions of the plant. This can cause some confusion in the spring if you happen to forget that they will bush out from the clump of basal leaves that often overwinters. Both species are slightly hairy and may feel sticky to the touch.

The threadleaf form, C. Verticillata, is easily distinguished from the other varieties by its long wiry stems and threadlike leaves. I love either the pale yellow (Moonbeam) or traditional gold colored forms. Some nurseries are a pink coreopsis, C. rosea which looks like C. Verticillata. In fact, some nursery tags mistakenly identify this as a cultivar of C. verticillata. C. rosea needs more moisture than other forms of Coreopsis and did not grow well in clay soil. I'd plant this in good topsoil which tends to stay moister during the summer.

Depending on the cultivar, Coreopsis will grown from 1 to 2 feet tall. The one drawback of this plant for the enabling garden is that you must deadhead it regularly to keep it flowering all summer. If you allow it to go to seed, most of the seedlings will not look like their parents. Like other plants, cultivars do not generally reproduced true from seed although you will find some varieties as seeds--just don't expect totally consistent plants. If you want a perpetually cheerful looking plant, Coreopsis is for you. This plant has never shown pest or disease problems and is seldom fertilized.

Rudbeckias -- Black Eye Susans

These are North American native plants which provide bright, bold color from mid-summer until frost finally kills the plant for the winter. R. hirta, is the wildflower commonly called "black-eyed susan" while R. Fulgida sullivantii is the species that produces most of the named garden cultivars. All have a flower consisting of a central disc that ranges from gray to black in color with yellow or gold ray flowers (petals) which may lay flat or droop.

One of the largest flowers is on the R. Fulgida sullivantti ‘Goldsturm' cultivar. This particular plant must be propagated by dividing. Seeds offered generally are not the same quality as the vegetatively produced plants.

Some catalogs classify these as coneflowers which may easily be confused with Echinacea. Rudbeckias are very easy to grow plants, best propagated by dividing the clumps in the spring. All species that I have grown have suffered some from mildew and shown leaf damage from leaf miners. Goldsturm has shown the least damage. I can't imagine a perennial border without one or more varieties of these brightly colored plants!

Hibiscus Species

This is a mixed up plant genus often referred to as Rose mallows. Often the plants are just sold as Hibiscus with a cultivar name. I have to laugh when I read in the perennial books that they are native to wetlands and need moist, rich soils. I grow my plants in a dry, clay soil and still have the same plants after 8 years. Mine were some unnamed variety that faithfully produce flowers about 6" across in a clear white with pinkish throat every August and bloom until frost.

The majority of our "hibiscus" cultivars are from the Hibiscus moscheutos species. Among these well known cultivars are: Lord Baltimore (5 feet tall with bright red flowers); Southern Belle (4 feet tall, may be white, pink, or red flowers), and Disco Belle (1 1/2-2 foot tall in mixed white, pink or red). I've seen these used as lovely temporary hedges in the summer.

My hibiscus were grown from bare roots started over 10 years ago. They now live in a friend's yard and are continuing to bloom annually. I cut them down to the ground early each spring and by August, they will have sprouted new canes up to 6 feet tall. I find this an exceptionally easy to grow plant. I have had mildew during exceptionally wet summers and some kind of insect that tried eating the flower buds (European earwigs?). Actually this is pretty amazing, considering that I give it all the wrong growing conditions! I strongly recommend that you buy some of these plants and plan on having them for your lifetime. Mine have taken poor soils, seldom fertilized and suffer from car exhaust and winter salt with no apparent damage. I simply can't argue with a plant this tolerant!

A word of caution is needed here: there are tropical hibiscus, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis frequently sold in greenhouses, with wonderful flowers. However, these are not hardy to North America!