Whirligig Hybrid Zinnia is the zinnia that thinks it's a Gaillardia... or maybe a Gazania... or even an African Daisy. The big, cheerful, single- to semi-double daisy-flowered blooms celebrate the great diversity of the zinnia. They open in every color and pattern, from simple bicolors to multiple ringed varieties. 3 to 4½ inches across, they combine well in the garden or vase, and have the same long-lasting color and form as their double-flowered cousins. Neat, bushy 20-inch plants offer lots of cut-and-come-again color over a long summer season.
Zinnias are one of the easiest annuals to grow, and attract butterflies to the garden. They are outstanding in beds, borders, and containers, and are the perfect cut flowerthe more you cut, the more you get. They thrive in the sun and heat of summer, and ask only well-drained soil. Their biggest enemy is mildew, so water them with a soaker hose or other ground-based spray to minimize wetting the foliageor, if this isn't possible, water them early in the day, so that the leaves can dry off before nightfall. Space the plants generously to prevent overcrowding. When cutting the blooms for the vase, trim off all the foliage; unlike the blooms, it does not age well.
