By Reba Kocher
Listen to this blog post here: Zinnia-2.mp3
If you’re like us, you are already planning what to put in your gardens for next season. You’re looking through seed catalogs and taking notes. Well, we have a great suggestion for next year’s garden--Zinnia! If you have some now, then you know just how awesome and easy it is to take care of.
Zinnia is related to sunflowers and belong in the daisy family. They are native to scrub and dry grasslands, so you can see them in the Southwestern United States, Mexico, and throughout South America. Because they are from these regions, they love dry, hot weather. They are best to plant as seeds in the late spring until the end of June. They grow pretty fast--from seed to flower in about 2 months! They are very low maintenance needing really only well-draining soil and full sun. They don’t need watered very regularly--only when the soil is dried through. They also don’t require fertilizer or mulching.
Zinnia are awesome because they are easy to take care of, but they are also so beautiful! They come in many different varieties. There are dwarf ones, tall ones, creeping ones, ones with single flowers, ones with double flowers, ones with cactus flowers, and so many more! They come in lots of colors and they can even be bi-colored or tri-colored. And.. the most exciting part? They will attract butterflies and hummingbirds to your yard! Definitely consider planting some Zinnia in your garden. We just planted some in our Children's Garden in late June, and they are beautiful and blooming. I have seen several Monarch butterflies drinking from them just today! Stop by and check it out!
Photos of the Zinnia in our Children's Garden
Cactus flower Zinnia
Tri-Colored Zinnia
Further Reading:
https://www.homestratosphere.com/types-of-zinnias/
https://www.chicagobotanic.org/plantinfo/smart_gardener/zinnias_hardest_working_flower_summer_garden