Rudbeckia hirta, commonly named black-eyed Susan, is an upright, flowering plant in the Asteraceae family. Usually, it is an annual, sometimes a biennial.
Rudbeckia hirta grows 30 to 100 cm tall. It has alternate, mostly basal leaves 10 to 18 cm long, covered by coarse hair. Rudbeckia hirta has branching stems and daisy-like, composite flower heads appearing in summer and early autumn. The flowers are up to 10 cm in diameter, with yellow ray florets circling conspicuous brown or black, dome-shaped cones of many small disc florets.
Rudbeckia hirta is a great pollinator plant. Native bees and butterflies are particularly attracted to it, as well as birds which consume its seeds.
The black-eyed Susan is sometimes confused with the less common, brown-eyed Susan, which is taller, flowers later and over a longer period and has smaller flowers.