This month on Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Matthew Dressing and Joanne Shaw take a deep dive into some of the colourful and resilient staples of the perennial garden. Last week's topic was Salvias and Speedwells and in this episode, they discuss Echinacea & Rudbeckia, also known as Purple Coneflower and Black-eyed Susan.

Tune in to learn more about Echinacea & Rudbeckia.

Discover useful information about each plant, including:

• Growing conditions: soil, temperature, zones, lighting, watering.
• Blooming: type of blooms, when & for how long, what colours.
• Use and value of each to the perennial garden.
• Cultivars of note for each plant.

Matt and Joanne also answer some great listener questions about perennials:

• How deep should you plant in the garden?
• What does dead-heading mean?
• What are the best perennials and annuals to grow in the shade?
  • Suggested perennials: Brunnera, Lungwort, Tiarella, Bugbane, Columbine
  • Suggested annuals: Begonias, Calla lilies, Impatiens, Wishbone

Enjoy past perennial Down the Garden Path podcast episodes:

Intro to Perennials

Perennials: Peonies

Perennials: Groundcovers

Perennials: Ornamental Grasses

Perennials: Attracting Beneficial Insects

Shade: Beyond the Hosta

About Your Hosts

Each week on Down The Garden Path podcast, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade.

And Matthew Dressing is a horticulturist and landscape designer. He owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, Joanne and Matthew do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and helpful topics. Their goal is to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible.