It can be fun to breed your own zinnias - Part 6

Pistil, thanks for the tip about "Shaggy Dog". That is a spectacular flower! I would want one of those in EVERY color!

Zen_Man, thanks for the tips about the Giants Of California, and thanks for the images! I love the one on the left especially. I'll have to check those out too, because large is always fun.

Brendak654, is that a zinnia on your profile photo? It's pretty stunning. So many to choose from!

Yes - zinnia on my profile photo.

Check out the tiny ones in this bouquet I picked this morn.

Brenda, what is the big orange one? Do the seeds produce identical plants with the same flower (open pollinated)?

ZM - Your latest post of the offspring from Bedhead is amazing and just about beyond cactus. Very good! Congrats!

Thanks for the information. You sure know a lot about zinnias!

Hello all,

One of my zinnia breeding projects is to perfect a Spider Flowered zinnia, and this specimen is a step in that direction. The spider flower form is basically a modification of the cactus flowered zinnias. The ultimate goal is much longer narrower petals, but this one has somewhat longer narrower petals than usually appears in a cactus mix.

ZM

ZM

I'm not sure I've seen a white spider before. At least not a really airy one. Lots of pollen there.

brenda

Hi Brenda,

This big-petaled specimen has petals that develop "frosted' tips only a day or two after opening. I guess that is indicative of Whirligig ancestry.

ZM

ZM - It is interesting with the frosty tips. I'm assuming that is the first bloom for that plant - so it will be interesting is all blooms on that plant have the frosting. Zinnias never cease to amaze me - they speak volumes.

brenda

Hi Brenda,

I have a Whirligig in bloom that probably very closely resembles the Whirligig ancestor that contributed the "frosty" effect. I will keep an eye on side blooms to see if they repeat the frosty behavior.

ZM

ZM - Those Whirligig blooms are beautiful and so many.

Another round of hot/humid weather - which will surely make my zinnia crop happy where I have them planted. Here are some photo's from my zinnia today. These are some of the ones that I will try and save seed from and use to do a little pollinating with (not necessarily in that order).

I'm fascinated with the red edging on zinnia bloom in the first photo.
On # 3 photo - As you can see the soldier beetle is there - helping pollinate (I guess) as they don't seem to bother the zinnia and they show up this time of year always on the zinnia..
I really like the color I have with that #4 shot.
#5 wasn't the greatest of blooms, but the variation of pinks is lovely and different. I'll be excited to see more blooms out of this plant.

I like the red edges too.

Hello all,

It has been a while since our last messages. I have been busy with Fall cleanup in my garden, as well as working with a few late season zinnias. Pictures attached.

ZM

Very nice ZM and Brenda, it's always a thrill to come and see what you two have come up with. Keep up the great work and thanks for keeping us apprised of the newest developments.

ZM - I'm enjoying your zinnia, always.

Here are a couple favorites of mine this time around.

Hi Brenda,

That first one looks like a progeny of Candy Cane or one of the other striped varieties. That second one is my favorite of the two, with uprolled spoon-ended petals and a spherical flower form that I totally love. If that one appeared in my zinnia patch, it would immediately be designated a top priority breeder status.

I am attaching a photo of another of my rather odd zinnias. It's not a favorite of mine, but it is rather different. It combines elements from cactus flowered, scabiosa flowered, and Whirligig bi-colored petals.

ZM

It is truly zinnia seed saving time here and I have been marking those beauties and cutting some seed heads of the ones I had tagged earlier for next years crop. Zinnias are an all time favorite. This looks to be the coolest day here this week with it being only 55 here at midday. Seven day forecast does not include any frost - which really makes me happy. Frost is NOT a friend to the zinnia. I hope there are others out there saving their favorites.

Wow Zinnias as far as the eyes can see, that's just wonderful! I'm smitten with your coral beauty and the vibrant orange, but I see many savers bloomin' their little heads off.

Robin - Thank you! I have shared with local garden club on Tuesday. They had a great time seed saving and I hosted them with a seed saving program on the "how too's of seed saving" just prior. This is the wet area where I try to plant about June 1st each year. This year the weather was a bummer and I was NOT sure if they would perform for me as I planted them mid July and then rain & more rain. I'm happy to say, "Well they made it!" They make me happy every time I go walk among them. . . . . That sounds kinda crazy, but it is very true. The main area with the zinnia is about a half acre with 300 foot rows. I plant these solely for my enjoyment. Here is another color that I really like and will be again saving seed from (the first photo) and a few more - others. And then there are the cosmos beyond the zinnia. The cosmo are really enjoying this cooler weather. Glad I could share.

Brenda I especially like the second one-with red and magenta on the petals.

My favorite too. Very beautiful! There is a couple of patches near me and it makes me happy to see it everytime I drive by too.

The zinnia that you all liked reminds me a little of a Gerber Daisy.

Pistil - You really examined that zinnia to see the magenta. Good eye!

Kind comments appreciated - thank you!

The slightest frost will take the zinnias out and so far the forecast looks good still for the next 7 days at least. Me and my zinnia - happy happy happy!

:)

Hello all,

It is seed-saving time here, and we are having some wonderfully warm weather to do it in. I am attaching a picture of a recombinant with scabious heritage that is interesting. It reminds me a bit of a Gaillardia, or perhaps an Echinacea. I plan to place a little more emphasis on work with scabious zinnia types, both indoors and outdoors. I have a lot of different new types of zinnias to cross them with, and I think they have potential for creating further new zinnia forms.

By the way, Brenda, did you say that you planted any of the Zinderellas yet? You have more zinnia growing space than anyone else on the planet, that I know of. I have all the growing space that I can handle, but it is considerably less than half an acre. Your big zinnia grow-outs have already produced a lot of great new specimens, and I suspect many more good results are to come next year.

It won't be too long until I start my indoor zinnia project, but right now I am concentrating on seed saving.

ZM

ZM - I too am seed saving and I have gotten all carried away - what fun!!! I also picked 3 buckets of mostly zinnia yesterday and gave them to the local garden club to use at their "garden therapy". I had the same local garden club out last Tuesday and let them seed save from the zinnia that were not tagged by me.

Perfect weather!!!

You may not have as large an area as I do for growing the zinnia, but your indoor winter zinnia project sure makes up for that.

I tried what you suggested with the green zinnia seed. WOW that was impressive. I have some great and very interesting zinnia from those. I used the green zinnia seed to complete one of my rows in the big garden (where I had ran out of other seed). I most definitely will do that again and I sure thank you for the green seed suggestion. I need to take photos of those this year green seed zinnia bloomers and share.

No ZM, I buy VERY few zinnia seed and I have not tried the Zinderellas.

I have noticed that the scabiosa zinnia plants start off with beautiflly rounded scabiosa heads, then as time goes by (probably less nutrients) the heads become less attractive, not so rounded and more flat.

Back to separating the zinnia seed from the rest of the bloom tomorrow. It may take me a while. I may be doing that for many moons - HA!

These were the results of green seed zinnia that I used to finish a row of zinnia this year. Not that they are so pretty, it was the fact that I could use this years seed to grow this years zinnia. Thanks ZM, could not have done it without your knowledge! Here they are and I checked back on a planting date and it was shortly after 7/18/16.

They're not pretty Brenda...they're beautiful, just not unique like some of yours and many of ZM's. Congrats on the green seed propagation!

BTW, when the last ZM entry was posted, I thought Echinacea right away.

Thank you Robin!

Weather and time is running out on zinnia seed saving, but that is what I have been up to today. Lots of tiny critter pollinators out there today in the zinnia garden. I'm still doing a little tagging and pollinating and holding off on harvesting these just yet.

These zinnia remind me of nail polish choices. Lots to choose from. Here are a few more I tagged and worked with today.

Lots to choose from - my favorite place to be - "In the Zinnia Garden" - with other pollinators besides me..

There you go, lot's of unique ones there. You must have zillions of pollinators!

I must share this one - it is my very favorite for the season. Hybridizing does pay off - it's a GOOD THING. I just keep saving zinnia seed. You would think by now I would have enough.

Anyone else out there saving?

Hi Brenda,

I am totally wild about that last one. Those extra wide petals make that thing look very much like a rose. You have proved that "rose flowered" zinnias are a possible thing. That could be a breakthrough. I hope you will save seed from that one individually. And I will be looking for something like that in my garden next year. I have tended to prefer narrow zinnia petals, but am also acutely aware that wide petals can have great potential. As that one does.

ZM

Thank you ZM - I love this one!

Frost has not taken out but a few of my zinnias. The blooms that were lightly touched by the cold, I have cut off in hopes that new buds will open real soon.

I'm looking forward to taking bouquets of zinnia to a district garden club event later in the week.

Saving lots of zinnia seeds, more than norm.

I too really like the "rose"!
It will be fun to see what it's offspring look like next year.

Yay Brenda...what a beauty!