EcoBlog
The latest thinking on ecological landscapes. Useful tips to improve our environment
Your Favorite Native Plants: Cutleaf Coneflower
Autumn Thomas had the final winning entry to the EcoBeneficial t-shirt contest:
“I’m going to go with Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata) even though it’s a tad aggressive, I see hundreds of bees, beetles and lepidoptera (butterflies, skippers and moths) on it every year. Then, after it goes to seed flocks of goldfinches arrive!”
Wondering if Cutleaf Coneflower would be a good fit in your landscape? Take a look:
Zones: 3 to 9
Native range: Quebec to Montana, south to Florida and Arizona
Member of the Aster family (Asteraceae).
Prefers moist, slightly acidic, fertile soil in full sun to part sun (needs moister soil in full sun).
Mature plant size: 3 to 6 feet high x 3 to 4 feet wide.
Spreads by underground stems, and can be “frisky” in the garden – give it space!
It’s a great native alternative to the exotic invasive Yellow Flag Iris (Iris Pseudacorus).
Flower heads are 2 ½” to 3” across and attract many pollinating insects including: long-tongued and short-tongued bees ( including honey bees), predatory wasps, butterflies, skippers, moths, some beetles and flies.
Cutleaf Coneflower is a host plant for caterpillars of the Silvery Checkerspot butterfly and several moths.
Leave the stems and dried flower heads standing through winter to provide seeds for Goldfinches and overwintering sites for insect egg cases (Praying Mantids included!).
Plant Native! from Kim Eierman at EcoBeneficial!
Photo: Rudbeckia lacianata (Cutleaf Coneflower)
Photo credit: Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Oohangousou.JPG
More from EcoBlog
Spring Wildflowers With Carol Gracie part 1
After a long, cold, seemingly never-ending winter, what a treat it was to go on a spring wildflower hike with author, photographer and naturalist Carol Gracie. Gracie is the author of two excellent books on wildflowers. Her first book, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest: A Field Guide to the…
Honey Bee Losses for Winter 2013/2014
According to the latest survey results from the Bee Informed Partnership, honey bees fared better this past winter than the previous winter. Commercial beekeepers reported losing 23.2% of their colonies over the winter of 2013/2014 versus a loss of 30.5% for the previous winter. This volume of loss is still not…
Praying Mantis Confidential
Most of us hold the Praying Mantis and other Mantises in high regard – highly beneficial insects in our landscapes, valued as voracious predators of insect pests. They are fascinating creatures that charm even those people who are squeamish about “bugs.” We have put Mantises on an “insect pedestal” wishfully…