Zinnias last until October + Best method for cutting

11 years ago

All the articles on how to make Zinnias keep their bloom simply say to deadhead them but when I read about deadheading zinnias there seems to be several different methods.

My number 1 goal is to have cut zinnias for my wedding in October.

I'm wondering the best way to keep zinnias blooming and the best way to dead head them to have long stems for cutting.

Where on the stem to cut? High close to the flower or lower?

When to cut - do I have to wait for the flowers to start fading or can I cut sooner? I would love to have vases of flowers all summer but that's not a priority.

Thanks!!

Comments (2)

Danielle Zzzz
Original Author
11 years ago
Just as an example I've added a link to: not the tallest but also not the shortest of my zinnias. On this one the stem is about 3 or 4 inches from flower to first set of leaves. Normally I would cut so I could put it in a vase but I do want the stems to be longer.

Photo: http://i46.tinypic.com/alnhvc.jpg

These are the types I'm growing:

MAGELLAN CORAL
MAGELLAN IVORY
BENARY'S GIANT SALMON ROSE
BENARY'S GIANT WHITE
ZINNIA, QUEEN RED LIME

thank you!

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:622249}}
thinman
11 years ago
If your zinnias are already that big, they will probably be pretty tired and run down by October, and I don't think you can count on them to be producing very well. Down in Zone 7, they will probably age faster than up here.

What you need to do is plant your seeds 90 days before your wedding. I've found that here in Michigan 90 days of growing puts them right at the peak of production. Some will bloom earlier and some will bloom later, so you have a safety margin there, if the weather gets ornery.

As far as when to cut, I like to cut just before the little yellow star-shaped pollen bodies show up, or maybe when they first appear. If you cut them a day or two before your wedding, they will last just fine, no matter what stage you cut them at. Cut them low. The stems will be nice and long then and the plant will branch out and give you new stems.

Good luck with your wedding.

ThinMan