Sunbeckia Graffiti Scarlet Black-Eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta ‘Sunbeckia Graffiti Scarlet’Sunbeckia® Graffiti Scarlet Black-Eyed Susan is a selection of Rudbeckia hirta from the German breeder Bull Plant Genetics, grown for its unusual flower color. Deep scarlet-red petals surround a dark chocolate-brown center, a shade rarely seen in black-eyed Susans. The plant forms an upright, well-branched mound of green, bristly-hairy leaves, typically 18–24 inches tall and about 2 feet wide, with sturdy stems that keep the large flowers upright.
Flowers up to 6 inches across open in summer and continue into fall, especially when spent blooms are removed. Bees and butterflies visit the open centers for nectar and pollen, and the long stems make good cut flowers. In the landscape, the red blooms suit the front of sunny borders, mixed containers and patio pots, and small groups where the color reads from a distance. It pairs well with salvia, verbena, lantana and ornamental grasses.
Full sun produces the most flowers and the sturdiest stems. Average, well-drained soil suits it best, and it should not sit in water. Once established it tolerates short dry spells, and deer and rabbits usually leave it alone. Growers rate it hardy in Zones 7–10, which places Maryland gardens at the cold edge of its range, so plants may come back for one to a few seasons. Its months of summer-to-fall color make even a single season worthwhile. Simple, regular care keeps it blooming.
Care Instructions:
Planting: Plant in spring once the danger of frost has passed, in full sun where air moves freely around the foliage.
Soil: Grows in average, well-drained clay, loam or sandy soil; avoid low spots where water stands after rain.
Watering: Water deeply and regularly through the first growing season, then water when the top 2 inches of soil are dry; plants in containers need water more often in summer heat.
Fertilizing: Apply a light, balanced fertilizer in spring; moderate fertility gives the best flower show, while excess nitrogen produces soft, leafy growth.
Pruning: Deadhead spent flowers through summer and fall to extend bloom, and remove old stems and foliage in early spring before new growth emerges.
Spacing: Space plants approximately 2–3 feet apart to give each mound room to fill out with good air circulation.
Maintenance: Watch for powdery mildew in late summer, divide clumps every 2–3 years in early spring, and replace plants that decline or fail to return after winter.
Gardeners choose Graffiti Scarlet for a red that few black-eyed Susans offer, on a compact plant that flowers for months from a single spring planting. It performs best in sunny beds, borders and containers, where it serves as a long-season accent. Replacing plants as they decline keeps the display dependable from year to year.
Landscape Solutions:
- Scarlet-red flowers bring a hot color to sunny borders, where most black-eyed Susans offer only gold and yellow.
- Its long summer-to-fall bloom keeps containers and front-of-border plantings in color for months.
- Deer and rabbit tolerance makes it useful in gardens where browsing animals damage other flowers.
- Sturdy stems and large blooms supply cut flowers from the garden through late summer and fall.
- Bees and butterflies visit the open flowers, adding summer nectar to pollinator plantings.
