Giant Zinnias are a beautiful addition to any flower garden. The Benary’s giant series of zinnia plants produce beautiful double blossoms in stunning bright colours perfect for attracting bees, butterflies and hummingbirds to your backyard this summer.
In this post you’ll learn all about how to plant giant zinnias including, where and the, how to care for your zinnias and tips for more blooms.
Zinnia’s are a stunning annual flower that are super easy to plant in your flower garden or bordering your vegetable garden. Zinnia seeds are also very in expensive to buy and are often found at the dollar store.
We grew up planting zinnia flowers with my mother. She’d give us a package of seeds to throw in our own garden in March ( right after danger of the last frost ) when she was preparing her vegetable garden and in the summer we’d have a beautiful arrangement of Zinnia’s.
Zinnia’s are also known for being a great easy cut flower and showcase well in a vase or mason jar. Zinnia’s are a great frugal flower to plant in your garden if you have an August wedding.
Benery’s Giant Zinnias
To plant giant zinnias, like the Benery’s giant zinnia variety, plant seeds outdoors after the last frost date. Zinnias can be started indoors, but they establish quickly and easily from seed when sown outdoors that I honestly wouldn’t bother.
If it’s not quite after your last frost date yet, make seed bombs!
HOW TO PLANT ZINNIA’S
When choosing an area in which to plant your zinnias, here are some qualities to look for in the perfect zinnia growing area!
- Zinnia’s thrive in a sunny location
- Zinnia’s do best in dryer soil
- If the soil is moist, add some sand
When planting seeds consider the following tips
- Don’t plant right after a heavy rainfall
- Plant 1/4 inch deep, around a fingernail deep
- Plant aprox. 4 inches apart
HOW TO CARE FOR ZINNIAS
Once you’ve planted your zinnia seeds it’s time to start caring for them. Make sure to water the seeds daily until they are established. Once plants are established, they only need to be watered 3x a week.
When Zinnia’s reach approx. three inches tall use garden shears to trim any leaves and thin the plants so they are about 6-18 inches apart.
Zinnia’s require minimal effort, and benefit from occasional watering and deadheading.
At the height of the season fertilize your Zinnias every other week using a water soluble fertilizer to keep them health and strong and blooming brightly.
TIPS FOR GROWING ZINNIAS
Zinnia’s are a beautiful giant flower option if you are looking for growing an easy to grow annual flower from seed. At the low cost of a pack of seeds you can have a beautiful arrangement of giant Zinnia’s growing in your own garden.
Share the joy of these flowers as they are stunning as a cut flower in any arrangement.
If you are looking to make some extra money from your garden this summer, why not grow extra and sell arrangements at your local farmers market or provide for a summer wedding in your area.
These are just a few of my tips for growing zinnias. Start them from seed, attract bees, hummingbirds and butterflies to your garden and take good care of your annuals.
CUT FLOWER ARRANGEMENTS
THESE ARE OUR FAVOURITE VARIETY OF ZINNIAS
SAVING ZINNIA SEEDS
Once the summer has ended and the fear of the first frost has arrived it’s time to clean out your garden and remove your annual flower plants.
Zinnias are one of the easiest annual flowers to grow as they grow quickly and have lots of blooms. Annual flowers grow for only one season and produce seeds. Once planted, seeds need to be saved as they will not come back the following year.
Nature works at it’s finest by reseeding zinnias from heirloom varieties but this can easily be mimicked by saving the seeds.
Save seeds from strong Zinnias plants at the end of the summer season. At this point stop deadheading the zinnias and allow the flowers to develop seeds.
On a dry fall day with little wind, hold a paper bag under each seed head and snip off the seed heads with pruners letting them fall into the bag.
Spread the seed heads and seeds in a single layer in shallow paper box or tray on a table indoors. Allow them to sit for 1-4 weeks to air dry to the point where the plant material is completely dry.
Remove the dried seeds by rolling or gently brushing them with your fingers. Place the seeds paper envelopes labeled with the plant information and date.
I USE THIS FREE PRINTABLE SEED PACKAGE
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