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Zinnia doesn't get enough attention

4:54 PM Wed, Oct 28, 2009 | Permalink
Pat Feinstein

Zinnia is a genus of flowering plants named after a German botanist and physicist, Jahann Zinn (1727 -1759), and referred by Julia Brittain in The Plant Lover's Companion as "flamboyant Mexican flowers"; yet this beautiful flower has never received enough attention and respect!

Zinnia has also received the honor as Plant of the Year 2000 by the National Garden Bureau; yet most people tend to overlook zinnia, in comparison to let's say -- roses, tulips, dahlias or chrysanthemums.

I truly feel indebted to zinnia for adding colors and brightening my garden year after year. I cannot imagine a summer without zinnias. I prefer to start mine from small plants as I tend to have problems with seed-starting. They like full sun and occasional fertilization. The blooming period is all through the summer into early fall. I still have a few left but the flowers are getting smaller since the weather has turned quite cold in the past few weeks.

Zinnia is in the family Asteraceae. You can find many shades of red, pink, green, yellow, gold, orange; but never in blue. Once in a while I have been lucky enough to find the ones with bi-colors.

I have spent hours watching bees tip-toeing on the flowers, butterflies flittering from one flower to the next and even watching the praying mantis munching on the pollen. Thanks to zinnia, I get to observe these interesting creatures as I admire the unique beauty and richness of zinnia. One added bonus when compared with tulips, I do not have to worry about the squirrels disturbing or destroying the blooms.