Narrow-leaved zinnia - features of growing and a place in the garden

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The most unpretentious, almost maintenance-free and hardy of all representatives of zinnia is narrow-leaved zinnia. It has to be grown every year anew. But all efforts compensate for the amazing qualities of this plant. Bright leaves and simple, shining daisy flowers turn narrow-leaved zinnia pillows into a bright decoration of summer flower beds.

Content:

Unpretentious and not fashionable zinnia narrow-leaved
Varieties and mixes of zinnia narrowleaf
The use of zinnia narrowleaf in garden design
Features of growing zinnia narrowleaf
Pest and Disease Control
Reproduction of zinnia narrowleaf

Unpretentious and not fashionable zinnia narrow-leaved

Narrow-leaved zinnia is often called a nondescript relative of the stellar, who again regained the former popularity of elegant zinnia. But to consider her a plant less talented would be a big mistake. This zinnia can give odds to star varieties and hybrids and surprise with much more decorativeness than you can expect from it. We also like to call her Mexican zinnia. This plant is truly a Mexican endemic and is among the base Mexican or Central American flyers.

Zinnia narrow-leaved (Zinnia angustifolia) - compact, densely branching and densely leafy grassy annual. This is the same short-lived and unobtaining plant, like all zinnias, but with more decorative foliage. The attractiveness of flowering and greenery in this plant is approximately equal, which allows us to rank this type of zinnia and its varietal forms as universal summers.

The average height of the bushes in narrow-leaved zinnias is limited to 30 cm, although most often it is a much more compact plant. The maximum height of varieties when grown under ideal conditions is about 40 cm. The plant develops in the form of a dense, well branching from the base, upright bush with stiff, stable, fairly powerful shoots.

Due to branching, the plant, when planting in groups, creates beautiful dense arrays that look elegant even before flowering or with sparse flowering. Thick leafy is the main advantage of this type of zinnia. Leaves lanceolate, sessile, with a slightly pointed, but elongated tip. With a length of up to 5-6 cm, the base of the leaves in width is limited to a maximum of 2 cm.

On the shoots, the leaves are arranged in pairs. The color of green zinnia narrow-leaved only adds to its attractiveness. Not dark, but medium green with warm shades contrasts beautifully with most summer-flowering perennials and annuals.

The flowering of narrow-leaved zinnias continues from mid-summer, when the plant merges into the choir of the best gardeners who have reached the peak of flowering, and lasts until the garden is really chained by the breath of winter. Sometimes, in good weather, in summer and early autumn, plants continue to bloom even after the first cold snap, but still they can not tolerate frost.

Narrow-leaved zinnia inflorescences are typical simple baskets with a convex center of small tubular flowers and reed flowers forming a tight circle. Baskets of narrow-leaved zinnia in diameter do not exceed 4 cm, often smaller sizes are compensated by the number of flowers.

The color scheme of zinnia narrow-leaved is considered rather boring. Pure yellow, white, red, orange colors of reed flowers and dark brown or orange shades of reeds - these are all options. In varietal plants, the base or tip of reed flowers sometimes differs in color due to a watercolor-spreading spot of brown or orange.

Narrow-leaved zinnias bear fruit abundantly in any climate. Plants form dense, oval-wedge-shaped, not very elegant seeds, bearing large and germinating seeds up to four years.

Varieties and mixes of zinnia narrowleaf

The number of varieties of narrow-leaved zinnia cannot compete with elegant zinnia, but the assortment allows you to choose plants for any garden composition and for any color palette. The selection of this plant is mainly in the direction of obtaining bright varietal mixtures with variegated colors and increased bushiness, as well as varieties with terry small baskets of brightly colored inflorescences that can bloom before winter. Individual varieties are less common than varietal mixtures.

The best varieties of zinnia narrow-leaved are considered legendary cultivars:

grade "Old Mexico" (Old mexico) - amazing fiery zinnia with muffled red inflorescences on which the lemon-yellow tips of reed flowers seem dazzling;
grade Glorienstein (Glorienschein) - a compact, stunted variety up to 25 cm high with small but bright baskets of inflorescences with a brown color and an orange base of reed petals, underlined by a bright orange center;
grade "Sombrero" (Sombrero) - beautiful and compact zinnia with densely arranged leaves and amazing brick-red baskets of inflorescences, decorated with a thin elegant fiery border.

Varietal mixtures have become true legends and most gardeners prefer to grow narrow-leaved zinnia exactly when it is possible to obtain a variegated composition, even using a single bag of seeds.

The most common type of mixture is "Persian rug" (Persian carpet), presented by almost every producer of seeds of annuals with their own version. This is a mixture of zinnias with red, yellow and brown colors of small inflorescences, which, thanks to the dense foliage, creates arrays similar to carpets.

Other varieties of zinnia narrow-leaved are also often found:

variety mix "Classic" (Classic) with a white-yellow-orange palette and creeping stems that allow the plant to be used as a groundcover annual decoration of the site;
creeping mix "Star Light" (Star bright) with yellow-orange colors and darker leaves, very thin and branched shoots, it can also be grown as an annual groundcover;
variety mix "Sweetie" (Candy) - an amazing set of pink-white-yellow-orange zinnias with candy pastel shades of color;
variety mix Lollipop Strip (Candy Stripe) with berry yellow, red and cherry shades of inflorescences.

The use of zinnia narrowleaf in garden design

Narrow-leaved zinnia is a universal unpretentious summerman, which is better to prefer for those lovers who want to keep gardening to a minimum, without giving up bright seasonal accents. This plant, first of all combining unpretentiousness with typically summer saturated colors, is a universal stunt summer.

Narrow-leaved zinnia is a more suitable choice for compositions of a natural style and bright country. In nostalgic and grandmother's gardens, she shows her slightly vintage charm, especially if variegated mixes are used. But even in landscape style, this zinnia is able to create the effect of a colorful wild carpet or mosaic.

Narrow-leaved zinnia can be planted in a variety of compositions:

for "chintz" flower beds and colorful spots;
lawn decorations;
closure of voids;
in patterned or carpet mixborders;
to create a low curb or mask line;
in low flower beds from annuals;
as a groundcover or for flowering massifs;
as an alternative to a flowering meadow;
for decorating the garden, in particular mixed planting on decorative beds.

This is one of the best varieties of zinnia for filling large portable containers and stone flower beds. Narrow-leaved zinnia, although it will be inferior in grace to low grades of zinnia gracefully, still looks good in the design of the potted garden and balcony.

For zinnia narrow-leaved as a partner, stunted and bushy summers are more suitable - annual asters, stunted marigolds and calendula, fragrant verbena and today's underestimated Turkish cloves.

Features of growing zinnia narrowleaf

Heat-loving and photophilous, narrow-leaved zinnia in the garden will prefer open, not too windy, sunny areas. The warm southern sides will suit this summerbook as well as possible. Where strong drafts reign, it is better to protect zinnia with a selection of higher partners.

This type of zinnia develops well in any loose, light soil. It is better to avoid acidic and calcareous soils, adjusting their reaction. Mature organic matter and mineral fertilizers can achieve more abundant flowering, but this zinnia develops well in any "average" garden soil. The plant does not tolerate fresh organic matter.

Narrow-leaved Zinnia

Narrow-leaved zinnia seedlings are planted according to standard rules. For large landings, you can apply in rows, but it is preferable to land in small landing pits dug by the size of an earthen coma seedlings. The plant is not afraid of contacts with the roots, but this way it adapts longer and blooms later. The minimum distance during planting is equal to the average value of the estimated height of the plants. Usually narrow-leaved zinnias are planted 25 cm between the bushes.

In regions with severe winters, narrow-leaved zinnia is planted only in June, after the end of spring frost. In the southern regions, seedlings can be planted in May.

Humidity and watering requirements

Narrow-leaved zinnias are amazingly drought-resistant. If we are not talking about extremely protracted drought, the plant can do without watering. If the weather is atypical, at the height of flowering in the summer, 1-2 maintenance irrigation with deep soaking of the soil is carried out.

It is better to find out if watering zinnia is necessary according to the condition of the leaves: their drooping and not straightening in the morning indicates that the plant is experiencing a critical lack of moisture. It is better to water thick bushes gently, without splashing the leaves, and even more so - inflorescences. Potted zinnias are watered after drying the soil to half.

Pruning and shaping plants

In order for the narrow-leaved zinnia to bloom for as long as possible, it is better for the plant to remove fading inflorescences in a timely manner and prevent the seed from ripening. If decorativeness is lost during prolonged rains, you can selectively trim heavily damaged leaves or shoots. After the plant suffers from frost, zinnia can be removed from the flower beds: low bushes, even if seeds are ripe, cannot boast of decorativeness and there is no point in leaving them until spring.

Fertilizers for zinnia narrow-leaved

When grown on nutritious soil, narrow-leaved zinnias can not be fed. To obtain more abundant flowering after the beginning of the blooming of the first flowers, you can additionally fertilize with full mineral fertilizers in a standard dosage. Narrow-leaved container zinnias are fed every 3-4 weeks, using complex preparations for summers or indoor plants.

Pest and Disease Control

Unlike graceful zinnia, narrow-leaved almost never gets sick. Only with exceptionally dense plantings in constant dampness can traces of powdery roses or spotting appear on plants, and the problem can be dealt with only by one method - removing and destroying damaged parts or plants.

Snails eat this kind of zinnia less than graceful zinnias.

Reproduction of zinnia narrowleaf

Despite great endurance, narrow-leaved zinnia is also grown mainly in seedlings and from seeds (with the exception of the southern regions with a mild climate, where the plant can be sown directly into the soil in April-early May). In successful years, sowing at the end of May allows you to get blooming zinnias for autumn compositions.

When sown in a greenhouse in May, flowering is delayed for only a few weeks. In the soil, seeds are sown to a depth of about 1-2 cm, in a light substrate, in rows, not too thickening crops. Shoots are thinned out as soon as the plants get stronger.

For seedlings, the seeds are pre-soaked and sown in a nutritious light soil mixture to a depth of about 1 cm. In bright light and an air temperature of at least 22 degrees under a glass or zinnia film sprout quite quickly. Glass is removed immediately, plants grow rapidly. When stretching, sprout soil to shoots. Zinnia dive when releasing a second or third real sheet.