The Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan, otherwise known as the Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ or Dappled Willow, Flamingo Willow, Shrimp Willow, Dappled Japanese Willow, Variegated Willow, Salix integra ‘Albomaculata’, Salix integra ‘Nishiki Flamingo’, Salix ‘Fuiri-koriyanagi’, is a rather well known shrub plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its low maintenance and fast growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its green colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
Fortunately, taking care of your Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan is not too difficult – as long as you follow our guidelines in this Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan Care Guide. Now let’s get started.
The fundamental caring guidelines for every Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan can be summed up into the following:
- Water: The Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan needs at least weekly watering, or more in extreme heat, preferably with regular water.
- Light: Keep your Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ in an environment where it can receive full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan in soil with moist but well-draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of sand, loam, and clay.
And that’s practically it! If you keep these three factors in check, your Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan will likely have all it needs for it to survive and even thrive.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan belongs to the Salicaceae family, the genus Salix and the species Integra, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ (rud-BEK-ee-uh FUL-jih-duh).
As with other Salix’s, the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan is a herbaceous plant, which means it will die back to the ground every year.
Growing Region
The Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan is a plant native to the Japan, China and Korea and southeastern Siberia.
You might be wondering why your Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan’s native region is important. Well, if you know where your plant originally came from, you’ll know which environment conditions it prefers, and with it, knowledge on how to replicate it at home.
With this in mind, the Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ will be most used to the heat zones in the 1 – 7 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 5b, 5a, 6b, 6a, 7b, 7a, 8b, 8a and the ideal climate zone is between 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16, 17.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan is a relatively fast grower, which makes things tricky for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, what size of Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan are we talking about? What can you expect in terms of height, spread and spacing? Let’s dig in…
The Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ can grow up to 4′ – 6′ (120cm – 180cm) in 4′ – 6′ (120cm – 180cm) and 5′ – 7′ (150cm – 210cm) in 5′ – 7′ (150cm – 210cm).
These dimensions make the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan a relatively large shrub compared to others, so it’s best to keep this fact in mind since it will affect where you want to keep yours at home.
This is why experts recommend keeping an area of approximately 84″ (210cm) free so the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan can spread to its best extent.
Water
In terms of watering, the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan is a fairly simple plant to take care of.
This is mostly because it has a straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ needs at least weekly watering, or more in extreme heat, preferably with regular water.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan in soil with moist but well-draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has good drainage, and moist properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan prefers to have soil with good drainage, and moist properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of sand, loam, and clay.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably alkaline, acid or neutral soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan requires full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to full and direct sun (more 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
Being a herbaceous plant, the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan will die back to the ground every year.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (early, mid, late), the summer (early, mid, late), the fall, and during the winter.
Flowers
You can expect your Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan to flower around the spring months from April to June (spring).
In particular, this shrub is well known for its flowers for cutting and showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan produces some beautiful yellow, or gold/yellow flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan have a beautiful green color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a opposite and whorled organization in its leaves.
You can expect the leaves from your Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ to be around (3-6 inches) in size.
Garden
Now, let’s talk garden and how your Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan will look best in it.
Most Rudbeckia Fulgida Var. Sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ owners agree that this shrub will look great in most mediterranean, cottage and rustic gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of informal and cottage, city and courtyard, and in traditional garden styles.
In particular, the Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan’s best location within your garden is in hedges and screens, beds and borders, and in ponds and streams, others use it for landscaping in a container, firescaping/fire wise, border, cutting garden, or a woodland garden.
Companion Plants
Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan’s do well with some other plants beside it. One good companion plant is the Caryopteris, which will pair up nicely with your leafy friend.
Others consider that a nice Gaillardia will work well too, so choose whichever you find works best for you!
Conclusion
So that’s it! These are the main plant care requirements that you need to keep in mind in order to have a healthy Goldsturm Black-Eyed Susan in your garden or home.
