Midsummer magic

Team rudbeckia ‘Prairie Glow’ with aster ‘Mönch’ for this gentle September scheme

The wiry black stems and sizzling hot f lowers of Rudbeckia triloba ‘Prairie Glow’ can be a bit tricky to pair up: its bronze and gold petals are so fiery the flowers might fight with similar feisty blooms. This attractive yet short-lived perennial flowers June-October then self seeds generously if you leave the seedheads intact (H90cm/3ft, S45cm/18in). Here the sky-blue flowers of aster Symphyotrichum frikartii ‘Mönch’ provide the ideal foil, setting off the black-eyed Susan perfectly August-September (H90cm/3ft, S40cm/16in). We think it’s a match made in heaven!