Rudbeckias, the sunny faces of fall Is there anything more cheerful in cool morning air than a clump of sunny golden black-eyed Susans? ese dependable late-season bloomers are perennial members of the sun ower family and formally called rudbeckias. ere are many styles of rudbeckia, and all have the daisy form of golden petals surrounding a dark-brown or green centre disc. e petals may stand out straight or hang back, and the disc may be a at button or a raised cone, all characteristics of their native prairie ancestors. Rudbeckias grow best in full sun, but will also put on a worthwhile display in half-day light. Rudbeckia ‘Goldsturm’ is the classic standard with bright golden-yellow petals surrounding dark-brown centres, and it is the only one that will slowly spread to enlarge its patch. ‘Irish Eyes’ has orange-gold petals surrounding a raised green disc. ‘Autumn Colors’ has bicolour gold, orange and bronzy red petals around a at brown disc. ‘Little Goldstar’ grows just knee-high and is loaded with masses of yellow-gold owers with prominent dark-brown centres. ‘Herbstsonne’, the Autumn Sun ower rudbeckia, grows ve- to six-feet tall on sti stems requiring no staking. A er hard frost, the centre seed cones of rudbeckias can remain standing as ornamental forms in winter snow, and will be relished by the chickadees and nuthatches of the cold months ahead. Gardening Topics we will discuss: • Who we are • Lobbying the federal, provincial, territorial and U.S. governments • Benefits of being a CSA member • Trip planning • Border crossing issues • How to count days in the U.S. • Forms – 8840 and W-8BEN • Travel medical insurance • Canadian Retiree Visa What we need: • Minimum attendance of 25 persons • Suitable presentation room • Projection screen or blank wall To arrange a FREE presentation in your community, please email the CSA at csastaff@snowbirds.org CSA DIRECTORS SPEAK! Canadian Snowbird Association Directors are available for presentations at your community meetings CANADIAN SNOWBIRD ASSOCIATION 180 Lesmill Road, Toronto, Ontario Canada M3B 2T5 1-800-265-3200 www.snowbirds.org The session will be followed by a brief question & answer period CSANews | FALL 2019 | 49
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