Happiness = Vases full of Zinnias

Is there anything cheerier than a vase of Zinnias?

Zinnias are easy to grow. They are tolerant of high heat, drought and produce blooms for months. The challenge? Harvesting them correctly and at the right time.

Cutting flowers at the right stage is essential to getting them to last a long time in a vase. The tricky part is that Zinnias look ready to be cut before they are.

To test if a flower is ready for harvest, grab the stem lightly about 8” below the flower. If the flower wiggles, don’t cut it yet, no matter how ready it looks. If it just sways back and forth, its ready.

Watch the videos below to see an example:

See it wiggle? It may look ready, but the Zinnia above is not ready to be cut.

This Zinnia is stiff on its stem. It is ready to be harvested.

The next tricky part about Zinnias is that for each flower you harvest, you have to cut off more of the plant than you think. I recommend cutting down 10-12”, which usually means chopping off the next set of buds. It is emotionally painful to do this, but here’s why:

If you just cut one stem and one flower, the next stems and buds will emerge from there. Your plant will get taller and more splindly with each cut- and your flowers will get smaller! Cut far down into the plant and you’ll have stronger stems, larger flowers, and sturdier plants.

To remove that lower set of leaves and buds from the cut Zinnia, grab the flower bud lightly, then pull down on the leaves and buds to remove.

One final note: Zinnias exude a sap that makes vase water dirty. Add a drop of bleach to clear vases to keep the water clear.

Enjoy your Zinnias! They are the stars of summer.