Zinnia elegans

‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’

CHERRY & IVORY ZINNIA

Zinnia elegans ‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’
CHERRY & IVORY ZINNIA

Zinnia elegans ‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’ is special.

Large formal double blooms 

With very LARGE, very full DOUBLE blooms on DWARF, compact plants.

Cherry & ivory formal doubles

The blooms are formal in petal formation, and also beautifully and formally colour shaded.
With each petal displaying cherry in the centre of the bloom, shading out to ivory tips, then with a fine cherry line around all the petal edges.
So each large bloom is strikingly beautiful in itself.
And breathtaking in mass.

Covers itself with prolific balls of bloom

So Zinnia elegans ‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’ is one of the most beautiful in the whole ‘Swizzle’ series of Zinnia, and completely covers itself with large formal blooms, despite the small sized plant.

Compact dwarf neat bushy plants

All the newly bred ‘Swizzle’ series are renowned for their prolific and long blooming that literally cover the compact, dense bushes.

Striking garden display, showy pots

So it is a perfect all-rounder for garden display, showy pots, or popular floristry flowers.

Ideal for small gardens

Providing excellent performance from a small space, making it especially valuable in small gardens.

‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’ makes an excellent cut flower

Zinnias symbolize thoughts of absent friends in the old language of flowers.
Though florists love them because they are so durable, long lasting and easy to use in bouquets or arrangements.
With Zinnia flowers lasting beautifully for up to two weeks in the vase.
But Zinnia elegans ‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’ is a floristry superstar because of its beautiful colouring and perfect, formal blooms.

Long blooming beauty

Zinnia elegans ‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’ is very long blooming with each flower lasting well on the dwarf plant, plus a constant procession of new buds emerging.
Thus providing excellent colour and cut flower value from early summer right through to the end of autumn and the first frosts.
And it is a splendid “cut & come again” plant. Because the more blooms you cut the more it produces.

Great bee food

Bees and butterflies cannot believe their luck with this long blooming smorgasbord of nectar and pollen, served up right through summer and autumn.
So they make ideal companions in the veggie and picking garden as they haul in the pollinators.

Repellent to rabbits and deer

Fortunately rabbits and deer find the flavour of Zinnias unpalatable.

Easy to grow in the garden or field

Grow Zinnia elegans ‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’ in well-drained soils.
It prefers lighter soils, from the sandy side to good garden loam. But can also tolerate clay based soils as long as they are opened up with plenty of organic matter to improve drainage.
It is also tolerant of a wide range of soil pH, from acid to alkaline lime based soils.
But do not over fertilize for best flowering results.

Water-wise

Zinnia elegans ‘Swizzle Cherry & Ivory’ is a water-wise plant to grow, requiring only minimal additional water during hot periods.
They relish summer heat and are drought resistant.

Recently bred ‘Swizzle’ Zinnias are even tougher

Zinnias bask in the sun, and like plenty of fresh air movement.
So they are ideal for more exposed sites and sea-side gardens, with their strong, stout stems.
They are after all natives of Mexico, and southwestern America. And as such well adapted to summer heat.
However the ‘Swizzle’ series of Zinnias have been recently bred to be even more adaptable, hardy and easy.
So they are more tolerant of Partial Shade than other older Zinnia varieties.
Bred with increased resistance to mildew.

Quick & easy from seed to flower

Zinnias generally take around 60 days from seed to flowering, given good temperatures.

Traditional medicinal plant

Zinnias were commonly used by native North American peoples for anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory medicines.
Though some tribes also believed the flowers should be regularly fed to children to improve their IQ.

Prolific blooming annual.
20-30cm. High with eye catching, very large formal double flowers x 20-30cm. Wide bushy foliage.

SEED SOWING ADVICE: QUICK & EASY

Very suitable for beginners & gardening with kids

Zinnias can be started very quickly from seed indoors.
Ready for earliest possible flowers and longest possible flower production.
But do prick them out quickly from their seedling punnets, as they quickly develop a long, strong root system.
Though they can also be very successfully sown direct into the garden.
But you need to wait until day and night temperatures are quite warm.

Sow indoors for quick & early plants: First sow the seed in a punnet on surface of good quality seed raising mix.
Then gently press the seeds onto the surface of the mix, to ensure good contact.

Now cover the seeds only very lightly to a maximum depth of 1.5mm.
And you can use sieved mix, or fine grit, or vermiculite, or washed sand to sprinkle over the seeds.

Then place the sown punnet into a shallow water bath and allow the moisture to percolate up through the mix from the bottom to the surface.

Now place the moist punnet in a warm, well-lit position (not in any direct sun).

Zinnias love warmth to sprout

Temperatures of 22-29°C approx. are best for rapid and optimum germination.
And do use a temperature-controlled heat mat if you have one, to keep the heat up and encourage rapid germination.
A warm window-sill or well-lit corner is also fine once temperatures are warm enough.

Adding a clear plastic cover or plastic bag helps to retain consistent moisture in the punnet.

And continue to keep the punnet moist by spraying the surface of the mix with a fine spray water bottle as required.

Seedlings begin to emerge in approx. 3-7 days.

Seed Count: 10 seeds per pack approx.
(We always aim to exceed the stated seed count, and give a generous serve).

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