My guess would also be a nutritional deficiency, and I agree with the repot, though it would be better if you waited to repot until June, when the plant should make the fastest recovery. Keep in mind, a repot is much more extensive than simply potting up. Between now and then, I would: * Flush the soil very thoroughly the next time the plant needs water and fertilize with a soluble synthetic fertilizer with a 3:1:2 NPK ratio. RATIO is different than %s. 24-8-16, 12-4-8, 9-3-6 are all 3:1:2 ratio fertilizers. I highly recommend Foliage-Pro 9-3-6 because it contains all the nutrients essential to normal growth in a favorable ratio (to each other) which can be very important - especially so if you're using a soil that forces you to water in small sips to avoid root rot or suppressed root function due to soggy soil conditions. * Fertilize regularly with appropriate doses. We can figure that out once we know what you'll be using and figure out how close you can come to watering correctly. For best growth and vitality, make sure that when you repot, it's into a soil that allows you to flush the soil of accumulating salts at will. You'll be at a turning point in your ability to maintain healthy plant material consistently once you understand how much influence excess water retention has in limiting your plants, and how much easier it is to grow things when you can water properly. The ability to water correctly is also a key element in your ability to take and maintain precise control over nutritional supplementation (fertilizing). Questions? Al

Hi mima, Boron (B) is slow moving inside the plant, so symptoms of deficiency show up first in the older leaves. B is much involved in cell membranes & the transport of Potassium which maintains the water equilibrium of tissue (ie: your plump varicose midrib). B uptake is less efficient in situations of: drought (many pepper growers keep 'em dry), low Nitrogen (N provides the vigorous growth that can move micro-nutrients), high Calcium & also when pH is high (may be pH rose over winter). B is very mobile in the soil & prone to leaching. It merits thorough mixing of fertilizer blend for ideal bio-availability. Deficiency symptoms for certain crops vary & most think of B problems on flower/fruit/tips of growth. As regards leaves, Boron deficiency can cause them to: distort, cup, curl at margin, pucker, deform, shrivel, crinkle, thicken, brittle, dry & appear wilted (when on young leaves begin to see yellowing &/or central leaf vein chlorosis the B deficiency is already long standing & crop yield will be less)

Jean, Thank you for drawing my attention to the problem! OOPS! Please try again and look at these pictures. Would love to hear from someone on this problem. Thanks, Pam Here is a link that might be useful: Revised Picture of Deformed Rudbeckia

It is sometimes called 'bolting' which is caused by a virus. Remove all the affected stems and destroy them. Remove a weeds from around the area as this virus is transmitted from plant to plant by leaf hoppers who love weed flowers.