Heliopsis, False Sunflower, Orange Sunflower, Ox-Eye, Rough Heliopsis 'Summer Sun'

I've had this plant in a mostly shady spot along a fence. I've only had a few seedlings start, maybe because of the shade. The soil sta...Read Moreys quite damp after watering but it is sandy loam and fast draining so the roots are never "soggy". It looks fabulous with one of my blue asters, also a sun loving plant thriving in the same shade. There are a few hours of morning light and both plants stick their heads out of the fence to catch the rays and get their blooms all tangled together. They're truly best friends and beautiful. I decided to dig up the plant as the shade was getting even denser. It rebelled for a couple of weeks last summer, but this year it's growing with wild abandon in it's new sunny spot. Some root must have been left in it's shady spot because there's another healthy clump forming there again. I judge the fabulous factor by the attention a flower gets from visitors. This one always stops people in their tracks with those amazing variegated leaves topped by the brilliant gold flowers. Love this plant. ALL my plants are kept moist, whether they require it or not. I'm a lazy gardener and they have to survive or die. This is definitely a survivor.

BTW....I have the "Sunburst" variety, not "Summer Sun".

This variety of heliopsis is a workhorse in several of my large flowerbeds. We live on the border of Minnesota and Canada. The plants i...Read Moren our yard get to be about 4-5' tall. Once it starts blooming in early July, the flowers just keep coming until frost. They do look better with deadheading, but I can't keep up with it very well. So they self-seed like crazy. I have given away many clumps to friends and family. I think they are wonderful next to my blue and lavender-colored Pacific Giant Delphiniums and raspberry colored peony-flowered poppies. They are the color that stays all summer when the other perennials come and go.

This was one of the longest blooming perennials in my garden this year. The individual flowers last an extremely long time, so much so th...Read Moreat I never even had to deadhead mine. The only problem that I had was that I did not realize how large this plant would get when I first lanted it, so much so that it crowded out some nearby plants in the second year. It is not invasive, but give it plenty of space -- it will need it. But the blooms are stunning and plentiful -- a sea of yellow all summer long!

I love this flower! Sunny, cheerful and beautiful!