The golden ball, which grows up to two meters in length, is an old country plant that is winter-hardy throughout the country. Here’s how to make the plant thrive in your garden.
The familiar gold ball from Grandma’s flower bed (Rudbeckia laciniata ‘Goldball’) also grows in transplant gardens and on the outskirts of agricultural plots.
The golden ball belongs to the day hat family, just like the ray and autumn day hat.
The North American prairie plant, daylily, was brought to Europe already in the 17th-18th centuries. Its multiple-flowered variety, or golden ball, entered the market at the end of the 19th century. Soon after, both plants found their way to Finland as well.
His last name Rudbeckia-genus has been given by Swedish botanists Olof Rudbeck the Elder (1630–1702) and the younger one (1660–1740) according to
Golden ball is a plant for a sunny place
The growing place of the autumn daylilies should be sunny.
The golden ball’s hemispherical flowers are bright yellow and turn towards the sun. The flowers consist of tongue-like lateral flowers. The spinning flowers in the center have also changed to look similar.
Flowering starts in August and continues well into autumn, even until frost.
The golden ball does not produce seeds, but is propagated by division.
Water and fertilize, add compost
The golden ball thrives in humus-rich and deep loamy soil where water does not stand. In very dry and barren soil, the plant stunts.
For large-growing perennials, such as golden ball, it is worth improving the soil 30-40 centimeters deep and wide. Store-bought container seedlings are planted at the same depth as in the pot.
Watering is usually not necessary after the rooting period, but in long heat, a large and leafy perennial will benefit from additional water. Spring fertilizing and adding compost soil as cover is good.
The golden ball grows up to more than two meters
The plant grows two meters tall or even taller. It should be planted in a place protected from the wind, next to a wall or other support.
In gardens, the golden ball is often a single perennial, but planting several seedlings together or supporting them on other perennials helps it to stay upright. You should put the supports in place before the flowers bloom.
The plant is very winter hardy. It forms ground shoots and is easy to propagate by dividing in the spring.
Since the golden ball is a perennial, there is no need to cut it. Some shorten the shoots, but the number of flowers may suffer.
There is also a lower variety of the plant
The variety ‘Goldquelle’ or ‘Golden Fountain’ only grows to a height of less than a meter and does not need support. Apart from the height difference, the plants look the same.
‘Goldquelle’ is slightly winterier than ‘Goldball’. For the winter, the plant can be protected by adding winter protective peat over the rhizome or by covering the needles that collect snow.
If you want to favor butterflies in your garden, you should first of all plant a regular autumn sun hat (Rudbeckia laciniata), which has simple black-eyed flowers. It also spreads from seeds.
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Sources: Sirkka Juhanoja, Katja Orrainen, Ella Räty, Jari Särkkä and Jyri Uimonen: Finnish perennials in green areas (Tamiistoviljelijät ry), Pentti Alanko & Pirkko Kahila: Ukonhattu and akeraliisa: Traditional decorative and useful plants (Tami).
Source: kotiliesi.fi
