Zinnias are a gorgeous flower, both in the garden and in floral arrangements. They are easy to grow and come in a variety of colors. Zinnias attract butterflies and bumblebees, literally bringing your garden to life!
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We have bought these California Giant Zinnia seeds for several years and cannot beat the price. We also have extremely high germination rates, and the flowers that bloom are all gorgeous.
We have also purchased zinnia seeds from Floret when they were selling them, and loved those. Our favorite variety is Benary’s Salmon Zinnias. Queen zinnias are another beautiful variety. Try out several varieties and figure out which ones are your favorites!
These polar bear white zinnias are a new addition to our garden and we love them for our cut flower arrangements. If you want to buy color specific zinnias, consider how those colors will look compared to the other flowers in your garden and the ones you will be arranging them with.
Growing Zinnias: Planting
You can start zinnia seeds indoors 4-6 weeks before the last frost date in your area. You can also direct sow them in the soil around your last frost date. We just sprinkle a handful of seeds on the soil and loosely cover them with a light layer of soil.
Zinnias are prone to mildew, so they need space for airflow. They should be planted 10-12 inches apart, so plan to thin them out if you direct-sow seeds. If you thin them gently when they are about 4-6 inches tall, you can transplant them to other spaces in your garden.
If they are too close together and do get mildew on the leaves, it is only the leaves that become affected, so you will still get plenty of flowers for arranging, you just won’t have a lot of green foliage that you will want to display.
Plant zinnias in full sun.
Growing Zinnias: Maintenance
Water zinnias in the morning, at the base of the plant, so that excess water will dry up. Watering at the base of the plant will help prevent water from sitting on the leaves. Try not to splash dirt onto the plant leaves, though, as that can cause the plants to get sick. Deadhead spent blooms frequently to encourage new growth. Cutting the flowers for display will also promote new growth.
Zinnias grow quickly and cover the ground, so they do not need mulching. A simple fertilizer can be used occasionally to promote plant health. This is the fertilizer that we are currently using.
Growing Zinnias: Cutting
When deciding which zinnia stems to cut, hold the stem about 6-8 inches below the flower and shake it. If the stem is floppy, it is not ready to cut. It’s ready to harvest if the stem stays stiff.
When you are cutting flowers, instead of placing them in a basket, try having a jar or bucket of water that you can put the flowers in so that they stay hydrated as yo collect all the blooms you want. If you are cutting flowers or trimming plants, it’s best to use clean and sharp scissors. Check out these gardening scissors that we use for our flower arrangements!
Growing Zinnias: Seed Saving
To save seeds from your zinnias, simply let the flower dry fully on the stem. When it is fully dried, you can take the flower head off and crumble it loosely until the seeds detach from the flower. Store the seeds in a cool, dry place.
When picking the flower heads that you want to save the seeds for, tag them with a piece of tape around the stem, or a string around them, so that you can remember which ones you don’t want to cut!
Growing zinnias is a low-risk and high-reward decision for your summer garden. We hope these tips and suggestions encourage you to grow them yourself. Let us know if you’ve grown zinnias before and what your favorite varieties are!
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zinnias are one of my favs! they make great cut flowers and last for along time!
Me too! I have at least 3 bouquets of them around the house all summer!
Love all your tips, especially about when to cut. I didn’t know that the stems should be stiff. Thanks
Thank you!
Love these blooms! So cheerful and easy to grow.
Totally agree!