Common zinnia

Common zinnia is a popular flowering plant native to Mexico and widely cultivated around the world for its vibrant and colorful blooms which come in a wide range of colors including red pink orange yellow white and purple making it a favorite among gardeners and landscape designers for creating striking flower beds borders and pollinator gardens the plant belongs to the Asteraceae family and is an annual meaning it completes its life cycle in one growing season.

The growth habit of common zinnia is upright and bushy with sturdy stems that can range from short compact varieties to tall cultivars reaching up to three feet in height the leaves are typically opposite lance-shaped and slightly rough to the touch while the flowers appear as single semi-double or fully double blooms with a central disk surrounded by ray-like petals the bloom period is long-lasting usually extending from early summer to the first frost.

The flowers attract a variety of pollinators including butterflies bees and hummingbirds due to their bright colors and nectar-rich centers common zinnias are also excellent for cut flowers as they have strong stems and long vase life thriving in full sunlight and well-drained soil zinnias are heat-tolerant and relatively easy to grow requiring minimal maintenance and benefiting from regular deadheading to encourage continuous blooming they are often started from seed either directly sown in the garden after the last frost or started indoors and transplanted once the danger of frost has passed zinnias are also known for their resistance to drought and adaptability to different soil types although they perform best in fertile soil enriched with compost or organic matter they are susceptible to common fungal diseases such as powdery mildew and leaf spot especially.

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