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After your zinnias bloom , as the flush brownish and teetotal , follow these tips to reap and store seed for next yr ’s garden .

If you are young to growing zinnia , see7 Best Tips For grow Zinniasto ensure a garden bursting with beautiful bloom .

Large orange zinnia and dry seed head.

Saving Zinnia Seeds

If you love zinnias and want to grow lots of them , the most economical way is tosave seedsfrom your existing plant at the last of the growing season .

Harvested at the right time — with the correct upkeep , theannualseeds will be ripe and stay practicable for several years to come .

Contents

Types of Zinnia Seeds

Before you carry through source , it ’s important to knowthe introductory seed types , what they look like , and what to expect .

While there areopen - pollinatedand / orheirloomzinnia seeds in circulation , many of the zinnias we grow tend to behybrids .

The advantage to growing loan-blend is we get what they were bred for . This may be sure colors , shapes , sizes , disease - resistance , or any compounding of these thing .

Zinnia flowerhead ready for seed saving.

The disadvantage is that only thefirst generationof seed has the genetic trait that make it what it is . If you relieve seeds from hybrids , they usually do not come on-key to the parent . And for old maid flower this means the flowers you grow from those save source may be different than you are have a bun in the oven . They may be similar , but perhaps not tell apart - on .

Whether this even matters depends on your preferences . Personally , I love all the interesting and unusual variations that old maid flower have to offer and do n’t mind the unexpected .

If you ’re the same , start deliver those semen and see what the next sowing time of year brings .

Zinnia seeds including some shaped like arrowheads.

Also , keep in psyche that some seeds protected byplant patent of invention , so you may want to check on this first .

What Do Zinnia Seeds Look Like?

Zinnia seed are brown and often little arrowhead - shaped coats .

Some commercial old maid flower seeds come coated , often with some intermixture of clay , lime , and perlite , and appear completely dissimilar . The coating can facilitate with treatment and sprouting .

Leave Your Best Flowers Alone

Mark Your Best Flowers

The first step toward seed saving start right in the heart of the grow time of year . If want seed , we have to let the flowers perish off and change by reversal to cum . This means notdeadheadingto goodly things up or only deadheading some of them .

One important tip for best resultant is tomark your good flowers with ribbon . When it come to plants , it ’s the strongest , healthiest , and most vivacious ones that produces the good seed descent .

If you ’re disquieted about the seeds flub away , you’re able to also placeorganza gift bagsover the flowerheads . They permit air menstruum but will grab any ejaculate that hang from the prime at harvest time .

Purple zinnia blooming in the garden.

Let these beauties go mighty through their ontogenesis cycle and be ready to harvest seeds when the sign and signaling tell you its time .

If the industrial plant shows any sign of disease likepowdery mildew , do not save any source from it .

Related : How to Deadhead heyday

Using pruners to snip off an old flower head.

When to Save Zinnia Seeds

Late Summer or Early Fall

We ’re come into seed harvest time when the flowerhead is brown and faded in late summertime or fall .

You need the seeds to mature first before harvest home .

Taken too early on , the seed will not be fledged , which mean they are not yet viable . Unripe semen can be livid in color . They plough browned as they mature .

Sweet pea flowers and seed pods.

But with old maid flower you could not see the come without pulling asunder the flowerhead , which stop everything . So only sacrifice a flower to check inside if you have circumstances to part with .

Signs of seed due date :

The paragon is to allow the mature flowerhead to stay on the works for a week of warm sun to dry thoroughly . But the conditions may have other plants .

Zinnia flower ready for seed harvesting.

If it ’s mature but damp , you’re able to bring it at heart for drying .

Related : How to preserve Sweet Pea Seeds

How to Save Zinnia Seeds

Harvesting Zinnia Seeds

When you think it ’s time , try pull a petal from the dry , brownish flowerhead .

When the seeds are fledged , the petal discharge fairly easily and , sequester to it , you ’ll see the seed , in its slight , dark-brown , arrowhead - shaped coating . Each one of those “ arrowhead ” contains a semen .

When quick , cut off the flowerhead and get it inside . Gently break undetermined the flowerhead and spread out the petals and seeds over a screen , leave them to fully ironical .

Dry zinnia flowerheads.

The part to write is just those small arrowheads . Everything else can be discarded .

How to Test Seeds

Test Seeds For Viability

rummy if your seeds will germinate ? Even if you do n’t need to grow zinnias now , you could still test some seeds for viability .

This has footstep - by - footstep instructions for seed viability trial . you could do it properly in your kitchen .

The idealistic germination temperature for zinnias is80 - 85 ° F ( 27 - 29 ° cytosine ) .

Testing seeds for viability and germination rates.

At optimal temperature , zinnias germ can develop in 3 to 5 days . At lower temperatures ( in the 70sF ) it takes 5 to 10 day .

If it ’s seed sowing time , you may sow your bourgeon exam seed .

Related : How to Test if Seeds are Viable

Vintage delphinium seed packet.

How to Store Seeds

Use these tips for storing your seeds . Zinnia seeds remain viable for 3 to 5 years .

Seeds need to be keptdryandcoolindarknessfor optimum storage .

I trust this helped you get started with seed deliverance . Make yourself a reminder to sow those seeds in spring , either indoors or outdoors .

Seed Starting For Beginners ebook cover.

Also see7 Best Tips for grow Zinniasfor more .

~Melissathe Empress of Dirt ♛

Ebook

germ Starting for BeginnersSow Inside Grow outdoors

by Melissa J. Will

young EDITION| Everything you demand to get set out with indoor source starting for indoor and outdoor plants . Grow what you want — any time of year !

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This ebook is a digital file ( PDF format ) you preserve to your machine . It is not a strong-arm merchandise .

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