The first 2008 seed catalogs arrived in the mail last week. Before placing my seed orders I like to read through my garden journal and refresh my memory about what I liked and hated in the garden the previous summer.
One plant that really surprised me was Mexican Zinnia ‘Aztec Sunset.’ I’m fond of zinnias with big blooms in bold colors so the idea of small bicolored flowers really didn’t excite me, but I ordered a packet of seeds and sprouted several plants just for fun. When they started blooming, there were a few pretty color combinations, but I still wasn’t convinced they were worth growing again. By mid-summer, however, I’d changed my mind. The plants grew about 14 inches tall and were covered in blooms all summer long. What surprised me is that I never had to deadhead them. They continued blooming long into fall without any help from me. That’s unusual for an annual.
By late summer many zinnias develop powdery mildew, but ‘Aztec Sunset’ stayed green and healthy. They also thrived in our hot, dry July weather when other plants struggled. They won me over with their tough, care-free habit and definitely earned a spot in next year’s garden.