Whenever I test a new cultivar, I’m cautious about how many plants I start from seed. I’ve been burned by hype a few too many times over the years, so a dozen plants is usually the limit until something has proven itself worthy. Zinnia ‘Zahara Sunburst’ more than lived up to its billing last summer.
The golden-orange flowers are splashed with red. My mom said they remind her of little rudbeckias.
Like other Zaharas, the plants grow 12 to 18 inches tall (mine are always on the higher end of that range) and are loaded with flowers from early summer until frost. ‘Sunburst’ was one of the first annuals to start blooming in my flowerbeds last year.
‘Sunburst’ looks great with other warm colors like yellows and reds, but the flowers really stand out next to dark-purple salvias or daylilies.
I’ll be adding many more of these warm, cheery plants to my flowerbeds this year.
2 comments
Hadn’t checked your blog for a few days and was pleased this morning to see this zinnia. It is a beauty. I’ll have to look for a packet of these seeds. Did you send for them or are they available in local stores? Three of my begonia bulbs showed signs of sprouting, so yesterday I planted them. The other three that I have looked rather dry, so I watered them and put them back in their winter “bed” of “mulch”. I’m hoping they aren’t completely dead.
Hi LT,
I checked Jung’s and they don’t carry Sunburst yet. I got mine from Swallowtail Seeds: http://www.swallowtailgardenseeds.com/annuals/zinnias.html#Zahara-Series-zinnia-seeds
This would be a zinnia you’d want to start inside about 5 or 6 weeks before planting them outside. They probably wouldn’t grow fast enough to bloom in our zone if you planted the seeds directly in the ground.
I hope your other beautiful begonias are alive. They’re probably still enjoying their winter’s nap.
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