Zinnia elegans ‘Giant Cactus White’ seeds

Description

This Zinnia has large quilled  white flowers with masses of long, needle-thin petals with fascinating texture . It is an annual , and is as easy to grow as the more familiar Dahlia-flowered Zinnia.

The blooms are fully double and stretch 10 to 12 cm across. Yet despite their massive size, they won’t flop — the long, strong stems are especially sturdy, keeping these blooms turned toward the sun in the garden or as cut flowers.

These plants reach 75cm tall and 30 cms wide, and begin flowering as soon as the summer weather arrives. They thrive in the blazing heat, asking only well-drained soil and adequate water to keep them dazzling for months.

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 flower–the more you cut, the more you get! They thrive in the sun and heat of summer, and ask only well-drained soil.

Note :  we have doubled the number of seeds in the packet as the germination rate is lower than expected.

Sowing advice
For best results sow zinnia where they are to flower (they like a sunny, sheltered position and don’t like to be moved) from the end of October to the end of November when the soil is warming up. Sow 3mm deep in drills 30cm apart into well prepared soil that has been raked to a fine tilth. Water regularly. Germination takes 7-14 days. When large enough to handle thin to 25cm spacing.
They can also be sown indoors Sep-Oct into seed compost at temp. 15-25°C. Do not exclude light. When large enough to handle transplant and grow on in cooler conditions. Acclimatise 10-15 days and plant out after danger of frost has passed.