black-eyed Susan

When to plant black-eyed Susans?

Botanical name
Rudbeckia fulgida
Family
Asteraceae

Black-eyed Susans are planted from March to May. They flower from July to October.

Black-eyed Susans are perennial plants.

black-eyed Susan
Photo: Jerzy Opioła (Poland) · CC BY-SA 3.0

Black-eyed Susans through the year

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Planting
Sowing
Flowering
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  • planting
  • sowing
  • flowering

In short

Planting
from March to May
weeks 10 to 19
Sowing
from April to May
weeks 18 to 22
Flowering
from July to October
weeks 28 to 40
Propagation
division and seed

Growing conditions

🪨
Soil
heavy and light
☀️
Sun
full sun
💧
Water
moderate water
❄️
Frost
overwinters outdoors
📏
Height
61 to 91 cm

Pests and diseases

Listed here is every problem for which the sources name this plant as a host. The problems are not listed in order of how common they are.

Aphids

pest
Signs
Colonies of small aphids sit on the shoot tips and the underside of the leaves. The leaf curls and puckers, and sticky honeydew is left on everything below. The viruses they carry are more dangerous than the feeding itself.
Prevention
Go easy on nitrogen, because soft sappy growth is what aphids are looking for. Encourage the predators (ladybirds, lacewings, parasitic wasps). Use a reflective mulch, which puts them off settling, and a strong jet of water to knock the colony off the tips.

Powdery mildew

disease
Signs
A white, floury coating spreads over the leaves, first on the lower and older ones. The leaf under it yellows and dries up. The fruit stays small, because the plant loses leaf surface.
Prevention
Plant resistant varieties, leave an airy spacing and sun, and clear the debris at the end of the season. Unlike most fungi it is not helped by wet foliage, since it spreads in heat and high air humidity, in a dry summer too.

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Related plants

The plants below are in the same botanical family (Asteraceae).

Sources about the plant: GBIF Backbone Taxonomy, NC State Extension Plant Toolbox, Royal Horticultural Society, University of Illinois Extension, Wikidata. Checked between 14 and 28 August 2026. The problem descriptions also draw on: Clemson Cooperative Extension, KGZS, UF/IFAS Extension, University of Maryland Extension, University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension, Utah State University Extension.