In recent years I’ve seen individual Magellan zinnias for sale at garden centers for as much as $6.99 per plant. That’s why I like to sprout my own annuals from seed each year. Not only can I choose which colors of flowers I want to grow, but I also get more bang for my buck.
I love Magellan zinnias because they showcase big flowers on short, sturdy, carefree plants that grow 12 to 18 inches tall. The plants bloom throughout the summer until the first frost in fall.
Magellan ‘Salmon’ sports big, poofy flowers that look pink when the blooms first open and then they gradually turn a lovely shade of salmon. The flowers I grew last summer shrugged off the drought and needed very little care from me.
Magellan zinnias start blooming early in the growing season and attract bees and butterflies. Other than American Goldfinches occasionally landing on the plants to pluck out the flower petals, the plants I’ve grown have never had any disease or pest issues.
Magellan zinnias also come in red, scarlet, cherry, ivory, orange and yellow. I start my seeds indoors about 5 weeks before our last frost date in mid-May, but because these zinnias have such a long blooming season, you could sow seeds directly in a flowerbed in May and see blooms by July.