Viewing post #1132928 by ZenMan

Hi carebear,
Continuing responses.

carebear2056 said:Also, by "interesting" seeds, what exactly do you mean? (I need to learn the fancy trick of using your actual words for reference.) What do you look for in a seed?

I covered that some in the message above with the seeds photo. If I am going for bigger blooms, I select bigger seeds. If I am going for longer slim petals, I go for longer slim seeds. If I see an atypical different looking seed, I pick it.

carebear2056 said:I read that you like the more open petals. I do as well. Do you cross with burpeeana or cactus types? I have Eden Brother's "swirls". Is that the same as whirlgig?

I do grow Burpeeana Giants from both Burpee and other seed sources, such as Stokes, Swallowtail, and Hazzard's. Burpeeana Giants have arguably the largest blooms (up to 6 inches diameter) in the cactus zinnia class.

carebear2056 said:Are there zinnias you can't cross with?

I cannot cross with any of the Zinnia marylandicas, including the Profusions, Zaharas, and Pinwheels. They have a chromosome number of 46, which is not compatible with the chromosome number of 24 of Zinnia elegans and Zinnia hybrida.

carebear2056 said:I read that zinnias need sunlight to germinate. I've been having a little trouble with germination. I don't know if I am doing something wrong or if the seed I have just isn't the best. I looked at a lot of seeds online but I only ended up buying from Eden brothers and I also bought mostly from various stores like Target and Walmart. So far, I haven't had a ton of seedlings pop up. The button box were the very first but when I decided to have a garden just for zinnias, I had more success than I am having lately. At first, they sprouted in 3 days in late March but then we had so much rain that it killed all of them. I think I also overwatered them. It is hard to know if I am giving them the right amount of water. It is starting to get very hot and the soil just looks so dry sometimes. Now, germination is taking significantly more time and I'm not sure why. Sometimes they come up almost 2 weeks from planting. Do you have any advice as far as that goes?

Zinnias usually germinate in 2 to 6 days. They do not require light, although light is not harmful. I purchased my California Giants seeds from Eden Brothers, and they germinate with a high percentage in 2 to 4 days. Target and Walmart seed should be good, because if they weren't there would be a lot of people complaining. Sandy soil is presumably well drained, so how is it that rain killed your zinnia seedlings? Were they flooded and drowned? If that is the case, you might want to consider raised beds. We do need to figure out what your germination problem is, because zinnia germination is about as easy as it gets.

carebear2056 said:The University of Florida extension says they can be planted year round in this zone and that they last 4-6 months from planting. However, on the seed packets, it says to only direct sow March-May, on some March-August and on some Sept-Feb. It's just a little confusing.

That is more than a little confusing. Your Florida situation is very atypical, but that seed packet info is just wacky. We do need to figure out why zinnias would last only 6 months in Florida. Maybe they become very susceptible to foliage diseases like Powdery Mildew. Your coming experience may shed some light on this. My zinnias get hard frozen after 6 months, but that shouldn't happen to yours.

carebear2056 said:I have a good amount of space for my Zinnia project. It's not space that restricts me. It is free time :(

That describes my situation, as well.

ZM