Hi Lizzie,
Welcome to the National Gardening Association and this Annuals forum.
" Been creeping this thread for a few days now, so I figured it was time to sign up. "
Actually, I think the term usually used is "lurking" instead of "creeping". "Lurking" refers to just reading, but not participating. Glad to have you participating, and any of you other "lurkers" out there are invited to join in.
" ...so I was trying to satiate my zinnialust with buying seeds/google image searches when I came across this forum. Truly fascinating, the photos are unbelievable. "
There is also a longer running series of
It can be fun to breed your own zinnias over at GardenWeb (now part of Houz). It was actually the original, and this and the thread in Hybridizers over at Dave's Garden are what you might call "spin offs". Each venue has its advantages, particularly in how photos are incorporated in messages. I don't like the scheme at Dave's Garden and most prefer the scheme at GardenWeb. The photos here are actually large square thumbnails. At least you can incorporate two thumbnails side-by-side here, or singly if you wish. The intent of the square thumbnails is that you can click on them to see the full big picture, which may not be square.
" Does anyone have plans to create varieties that could be sold? I sure wouldn't mind having my own herd of shaggy dogs someday! "
I may negotiate with a seed company a few years in the future, when I have stable selected strains. I would sell them some seed stock that they could multiply to commercial quantities. I understand that sort of thing has happened in the past with other amateur zinnia growers -- the Aztec Sunset strain of zinnias for example. I am working on several unique strains. And my zinnias keep showing me new things that "they can do", so my zinnia project becomes more complex with each passing year.
Jack's caution about the Candy-Cane-type Peppermint-type striped zinnias is appropriate. Early on I wanted to cross stripes with spider flowered zinnias, because I thought the stripes might look "neat" on long thin down-rolled petals. But then one of my scabiosa recombinants showed up with stripes and spots, and I was a bit horrified because it was almost like some kind of disease threatening to take over my zinnia project.
I think it may be partially psychological on my part. Those spots look sort of like some kind of childhood disease "pox".
" Thought I had a good starting variety, but might have to add some scabiosa types now. "
The scabiosa types can create some interesting hybrids. Just be prepared to find a lot of off-type specimens in them. Culling your zinnias is good practice, regardless of what varieties you are growing. Your growing space is always limited, so it just makes good sense to use it for the best specimens.
I look forward to your continued participation. Now that you are a member, "lurking" is no longer required. (grin)
ZM
