Hello! I am already thinking about my beds for next year as protest to the measurable snow we already have had of late.

I have been piqued to try some of the Queen lime - any color (haven't decided which) zinnias and have read that they do better and stay double head if you sow directly. I have never had luck w any zinnia sowing direct and have to start mine indoors and move out. Will I indeed have issues if I do this? I don't know if my few direct sow zinnias have come up and someone has eaten them or they just detest my soil and in protest say forget it. I'd be interested what your thoughts are in growing this line of zinnias. The colors intrigue me. And I figured I'd ask you experienced growers.

Hello Scarlet Tricycle,

" I am already thinking about my beds for next year as protest to the measurable snow we already have had of late. "

This thread should make the Snow Fairy sorry she even messed with us. I also had an early snow a few days ago. It is all gone now, though.

" ...and have read that they do better and stay double head if you sow directly. "

I had not heard that. It has been a while since I grew any green zinnias. This one was actually grown indoors in my Indoor Zinnia Project a few years ago. It was not in the "Queen" series, but was a Burpee Tequila Lime, which Burpee describes as a "Burpee Exclusive". Click on the photos to see larger versions.

Its white center makes me think it has both green zinnia and white zinnia ancestry. The Queen series show how you can get interesting color effects by crossing green zinnias with other colors.

" I have never had luck w any zinnia sowing direct and have to start mine indoors and move out. "

You should be able to do both.

" Will I indeed have issues if I do this? "

I can't imagine that a zinnia bloom will be double or not depending on whether it was sown directly in-ground or started indoors and transplanted outdoors. This year I had the majority of my zinnias started indoors and set in-ground from 3-inch square pots, and they made double blooms just fine. However, when you sow your zinnias directly in-ground, you can find yourself trying to distinguish small zinnia seedlings from weed seedlings.

In order to help me tell the difference from young zinnia seedlings and young weeds, I tie a string between the stakes at both ends of my row, and pull a straight furrow under that string with a pointed hoe. Having the zinnia seedlings in a perfectly straight line makes it easier to distinguish them from the competing weeds.

Do you think there might be something wrong with your soil that would argue against just planting your zinnia seeds in-ground? Sunshine is a healthy thing for tiny plant seedlings.

ZM

Haven't had soil tested recently as the UW had not been accepting due to Covid and I haven't gone back to check lately. My soil is sandy as this area of the state provides the sand to frac, so it's dry and the only thing going for it has been easier weeding.

I had been doing searches on the zinnias and had read on one persons blog about the double vs single with direct sow vs moving about which I took to mean transplanting and having never heard something like this I thought to ask here as I've gotten good replies on my questions I noodle (I think this was the article: https://thekokorogarden.com/bl...).

Zinnias were always taught to me to be something easy to plant and have a lot of color and I've had nothing but trouble since I started raising them until I started them in house. If I sowed directly let's say a whole packet in my garden area, I would maybe get 4-6 plants tops. I do know I have major moles, but they are much more active late summer then early at least near this bed. I'm unsure why I have continued issues with zinnias. I also grow in other areas in this bed: dahlias, salvia, Marigold's, dill, lantana and the zinnias are the ones I have continued issues with.

Appreciate your idea of the line and it's something to look at doing next year. Thank you too for taking the time to reply!

When do you prune roses? I've heard you should do it now, some say spring. Also do you need to de-leaf them? Thanks! 🌹

Hello again ScarletTricycle,

I explored the Kokoro Garden website that you provided a link to. Interesting information about their zinnia growing. Another site that grows zinnias for the florist market is Floret Flower Farm:

https://www.floretflowers.com/...

You might want to check Floret out for a "second opinion" on growing zinnias commercially, much of which can be applied to growing zinnias in the home garden.

" My soil is sandy as this area of the state provides the sand to frac, so it's dry and the only thing going for it has been easier weeding. "

Well, if your soil is dry, water it (unless you just had a rain.) Sandy loam is my favorite soil type, and I purchase washed river sand to add to our Kansas sedimentery soil to produce a good approximation to sandy loam. I purchase sand by the truckload to have it handy for sand mulching my garden plants.

I don't know if they have County Agents where you are, but many places do have them, and they can be a big help providing useful information for your garden. And your County Agent could advise you on what soil amendments would be suitable for your soil. I have added pelleted gypsum to our local soil, and that has worked well. Zinnias are heavy feeders, so I foliar feed my outdoor zinnias, primarily with Miracle-Gro soluble Tomato food, diluted about 1 Tablespoon per gallon. Most plants, including zinnias, can absorb nutrients through their leaves, and that is the quickest way to make certain that they get the elements that they need.

I breed zinnias as a hobby, and one thing I have been going for is variations in the zinnia flower form. These are just some of the new flower forms I have developed that aren't commercially available. Click on the photos to see larger versions of them.


There is a variety of Gaillardias called "Razzle Dazzle" that have an interesting flower form.
https://www.dallasplanttrials....
I am working on zinnias that have a very similar flower form, and I call my zinnias Razzle Dazzles as well.

I have been making crosses between my different zinnia flower-forms to get still more new ones. I will be continuing that with my indoor zinnia project this Winter. Many of my zinnias now have petals that have some tubular structure, but the diameter of those tubes can vary a lot, and some zinnias that have almost needle-like petals can have blooms that remind me of an under-sea creature.

They say you should not save seeds from an F1 hybrid zinnia, but I deliberately violate that big time, and make hybrids between hybrids.

ZM (not associated with Miracle-Gro company)

Oh I'm not a commercial grower at all. But I do read on their blogs to get ideas, helps or even if a type of plant is worth trying.

Sand I'm inundated in and have been adding a lot of me made compost to the soil to help it out. We just finished filling the heap with chopped up leaves from what came from our trees. I do have to be mindful w watering due to my city water costs as it's not super economical and though we've had good rainfall it's been in the crazy world of deluges the last few summers a whole lot in a very short time. I've been thinking of adding a rain barrel but haven't quite gotten on that train yet and need to save money for.

Yes we have extension agents but due to the covid the last I knew they weren't doing a lot with the regular outside people and their test samples when I last looked they stopped taking samples in for testing at the university. Heck even 4H is out of commission much to the chagrin of my kids. I have an agronomist in the family so I should hit them up for ideas as well.

Your breeding is producing some interesting looking flowers and colors. How did you start if you don't mind me asking? I save seeds all the time from other plants both annuals and perennials, and in fact just ordered myself a large box of coin envelopes thank you amazon. In the next few weeks I'll be getting them cleaned up and away.

Do you have a thread on your breeding creations? I always like looking at new forms or colors people have helped create.

Hello Sara,

" When do you prune roses? I've heard you should do it now, some say spring. Also do you need to de-leaf them? "

This National Gardening Association has a special forum devoted to Roses. I suggest you ask your question there. That is probably where most of the "rose people" are.

https://garden.org/forums/view...

I don't grow roses, and I can't even get close to a rosebush without getting stuck by a thorn. The only flower I grow, besides my hobby of zinnias, is our Kansas native sunflowers, which grow at various places all by themselves. And don't have thorns.

ZM

Hello again, ScarletTricycle,

" Do you have a thread on your breeding creations? I always like looking at new forms or colors people have helped create. "

I have an ongoing message thread here on The National Gardening Association titled "It can be fun to breed your own zinnias." This is a link to it.

The thread "It can be fun to breed your own zinnias." in Annuals forum

There was also a related much shorter message thread titled "My encounter with a tubular petaled mutant zinnia." This is a link to it.

The thread "My encounter with a tubular-petaled mutant zinnia" in Annuals forum

When I first started breeding zinnias as a serious hobby I had a series of message threads over at a website called "Garden Web". Garden Web was subsequently acquired by a company called Houzz who maintain the original Garden Web forums in a modified form. I also had/have some zinnia breeding participation at a website called "Dave's Garden". Your participation at any or all of those venues is welcome.

I am currently modifying some of my T8 fluorescent fixtures to "overdrive" them, in preparation for restarting my Winter Zinnia Project. I learned to overdrive fluorescent fixtures many years ago in a message thread at GardenWeb. Zinnias thrive indoors in increased light.

ZM