How to grow zinnias? A detailed guide to daily care precautions
Zinnias grow vigorously and are not difficult to cultivate artificially; they do best in fertile, deep soil. Zinnias originated in Mexico and are widely cultivated across China. They are a very famous garden flower variety, so how can you grow healthy and beautiful zinnias?
Zinnia
I. Water and Fertilizer Management
When planting, apply 2-3 grams of compound fertilizer to the bottom of the pot. After planting, drench the roots with an 800-fold dilution of Dexon for disinfection. Within 1 week of planting, keep the potting soil moist to promote surface root growth. Once the roots reach the bottom of the pot, begin topdressing, fertilizing 2-3 times per week (apply water-soluble fertilizer on sunny days, with concentration kept within 200 mg/kg; apply granular fertilizer 2-3 grams per pot on rainy days). You can also apply 1 supplemental calcium fertilizer. Begin pinching 1 week after planting; after pinching, spray 1 application of fungicide and apply 1 heavy fertilizing. About two weeks after the final pinching, the plant enters the reproductive stage. Gradually increase phosphorus and potassium fertilizers, such as spraying a 1000-fold dilution of monopotassium phosphate, to encourage more blooms and vivid flower colors, while correspondingly reducing nitrogen fertilizer. During this period, ensure ample watering, and morning watering is better than afternoon watering; rapid drying of leaves prevents disease and excessive leggy growth.
II. Temperature and Light
Zinnias prefer warmth and sunshine, and cannot tolerate severe summer heat or severe cold. The optimal growing temperature is 18-20°C during the day and 15-16°C at night. Growth is especially rapid in summer. Full sun exposure with direct sunlight can be used. If sunlight is insufficient, plants tend to grow leggy and have weaker resistance; flowering will also be affected.
An introduction to zinnia planting methods and precautions during cultivation
Zinnia is a famous ornamental plant favored by flower enthusiasts. So what are the planting methods for zinnias? What issues should be noted in daily care? Come learn with the editor.
How to grow zinnias
Water and Fertilizer Management
Watering: Because of the high light requirement, water evaporates very easily, so appropriate moisture must be maintained frequently; in summer, water daily.
Fertilizing: When planting, apply 2-3 grams of compound fertilizer to the bottom of the pot. After planting, drench the roots with an 800-fold dilution of Dexon for disinfection. Within 1 week of planting, keep the potting soil moist to promote surface root growth. Once the roots reach the bottom of the pot, begin topdressing, fertilizing 2-3 times per week (apply water-soluble fertilizer on sunny days, with concentration kept within 200 mg/kg; apply granular fertilizer 2-3 grams per pot on rainy days). You can also apply 1 supplemental calcium fertilizer.
Temperature and Light
Temperature: Zinnias prefer warmth and sunshine, and cannot tolerate severe summer heat or severe cold. The optimal growing temperature is 18-20°C during the day and 15-16°C at night. Growth is especially rapid in summer.
Light: Full sun exposure with direct sunlight can be used. If sunlight is insufficient, plants tend to grow leggy and have weaker resistance; flowering will also be affected.
Precautions for growing zinnias at home
Plant shaping
If zinnias are not pinched, the plant will have too few side branches and too few flowers. Proper pinching can promote dwarfing and increase flower count. When seedlings grow to 4 leaves, plant them out and pinch to encourage lower branching and form a better plant shape.
Begin pinching one week after planting, keeping 4 pairs of true leaves, and decide whether to pinch again based on plant growth and branching. During the flowering period, continue applying phosphorus and potassium fertilizers such as monopotassium phosphate to keep new flower heads emerging. After flowers fade, promptly cut off spent flower heads to reduce nutrient loss.
Pest and Disease Control
Common zinnia diseases: white star disease, black spot, mosaic virus
Zinnias also need protection against leggy growth. Zinnia seedlings are very prone to leggy growth during the growing period. Pay attention to lowering the temperature, pinching, and watering less.
That is all I have learned about zinnias today. I hope flower enthusiasts find this article helpful. To learn more about zinnias, please continue following Duorou Huapu; we will provide you with more related knowledge!
Key points for autumn care of garden flowers
Key points for autumn care of garden flowers
(1) Characteristics of autumn climate. According to traditional Chinese custom, around August 8 on the Gregorian calendar is the day of "Start of Autumn" in the Chinese lunar calendar, meaning that from this day until "Start of Winter" in early November is "autumn."
In East China, the average daily autumn temperature is generally between 10 and 22°C, which is favorable for plant growth. But autumn is also a transitional season from summer to winter, with relatively large temperature fluctuations. In early autumn, the maximum temperature is still above 30°C, and can even reach 35°C; while in late autumn, the minimum temperature can be below 0°C.
In this season, the warm, moist southeast wind from the Pacific will gradually be replaced by the cold, dry northwest wind from the northwestern plateau. When the northwest wind forms and bursts southward, the lower atmosphere is controlled by cold air while the upper layer is controlled by subtropical airflow, creating clear, crisp autumn weather.
Autumn is also an important turning point in plant growth. Many herbaceous flowers have finished blooming, their seeds have matured, and their life cycle has ended; they need to be seed-collected and sown to prepare for the next life cycle. The growth of perennial flowers and trees begins to slow or stop, and some trees begin to shed leaves and will enter dormancy to survive the cold winter. Meanwhile, another group of winter flowers that go dormant in summer, such as cyclamen, primrose, and calla lily, begin to wake up and enter a new vigorous growth period, so water and fertilizer must be kept up.
(2) Daily management of autumn flowers
① Management methods: In autumn, for flower growers, in addition to continuing summer watering, fertilizing, and other daily management, there are many "special" tasks to do as the climate changes.
Early autumn: At this time the high summer temperatures have not fully retreated, especially the midday heat, which is still a threat to flowers and trees. Therefore, the shade curtain used in summer should not be removed hastily; simply open the curtain in the morning and evening for light and air, and keep shading during the rest of the time. Some flowers need even more special attention.
For orchids, maintain a moist and cool environment; it is best to spray water 2-3 times a day, with the spray in mist form, until the leaf surface is moist. Sprinkle more water on the balcony, ground, or sand bed to help lower the temperature and prevent the threat of the "autumn tiger."
For lotus grown in tubs in summer, although its blooming beauty has entirely faded, it should still be given sufficient water and light. Once the seed pods mature, they can be picked off so the lotus rhizomes can continue growing and ensure abundant blooming next year.
For kumquat, an excellent winter fruit-viewing plant, when it blooms for the third time, do not let rain fall directly on the flowers, to ensure fruit set.
Rhododendron flower buds are differentiating; reduce watering and increase phosphorus fertilizer to ensure vigorous blooming next spring.
Cyclamen and mature clivias can be repotted and given fresh soil to ensure the potting soil is loose and nutrient-rich, and to prevent blind flowers or stuck flower spikes.
Geranium, the pride of the balcony, after a summer of continuous growth and blooming, also needs repotting and fresh soil, as well as branch cutting and reshaping. Branch cutting means cutting off the flowering branches, leaving only stubs about 10 cm high near the base to encourage new shoots and maintain a sturdy, beautiful plant shape. Within 1 week after cutting, do not water or fertilize to prevent infection at the cut.
For chrysanthemums, do the final pinching and apply more topdressing until flower bud differentiation.
Mid-autumn: At this time sunlight gradually weakens, the summer heat has dissipated, and temperatures drop noticeably. For flowers and trees that were shaded in summer, gradually reduce shading time or remove the curtain.
As temperatures drop and sunlight weakens, the water and fertilizer consumption of ordinary flowers and trees also decreases accordingly. Watering frequency can be changed from twice daily in summer to once every 1-2 days or once every 2-3 days, and fertilizing frequency can be changed from 1-2 times per week to once every 1-2 weeks.
At the same time, the following points also require special attention:
First, after camellias form buds, apply 1 application of phosphorus fertilizer to ensure vivid blooming the following year.
Second, after calla lily goes dormant and new leaves are emerging, pay special attention when watering; do not pour water into the leaf sheaths to prevent rot.
Third, for kumquat, the "New Year's fine fruit," fertilize frequently, preferably with a mixture of fermented soybean cake water and bone water or turtle intestine mixture, to ensure sufficient water and fertilizer and achieve abundant fruit.
Fourth, early September is the suitable time for artificial hybridization of dahlias, and artificial pollination should be carried out promptly.
Fifth, for stump bonsai such as plum, elm, and hackberry, this is an important time for shaping and styling. Leaves can be picked and branches trained, and light fertilizer applied to encourage new leaves; after the leaves are uniform, prune again into a flat form.
Late autumn: Around October 8 is Cold Dew, and around the 24th is Frost's Descent. Daylight grows shorter, autumn colors are fully visible, and the average daily temperature is generally below 10°C. Once a cold wave arrives, nighttime temperatures can drop below 0°C, with frost or frost damage. At this time, be sure to pay attention to weather forecasts at all times and promptly bring flowers and trees indoors and take cold-protection measures.
In late autumn, the timing of bringing plants indoors must be well controlled, moving flowers and trees placed on balconies or in the open to indoor wintering, commonly called "bringing indoors." Whether the timing is accurate has a great bearing on the safe wintering of flowers and trees. If brought in too early, the indoor temperature is too high; if brought in too late, the flowers and trees will suffer cold damage, or even freeze to death. Therefore, for flower growers, "bringing indoors" is also a major task and cannot be done carelessly. Bringing indoors should be carried out in batches according to the different temperature requirements of different types of flowers and trees.
Tropical flowers and trees such as milan, lucky bamboo, Brazil wood, cordyline, and croton, commonly called high-temperature-type flowers and trees, have the poorest cold resistance. Generally, when the normal temperature is below 10°C, they are prone to cold damage, ranging from leaf drop, flower drop, fruit drop, and shoot withering to death in severe cases. Therefore, such flowers and trees are best sent to a greenhouse for fostering before winter arrives. For those that cannot be fostered, move them indoors before the temperature drops below 10°C and place them in a warm, sunny spot. Open windows for ventilation at noon on sunny days. When a cold wave comes, use insulation measures such as double pots and plastic bags; in the coldest times, heating measures are needed.
Carnations, clivias, asparagus ferns, jasmine, and cacti, commonly called intermediate-temperature-type flowers and trees, are difficult to protect against low temperatures below 5°C. Therefore, when the nighttime minimum temperature is 5°C, they must be moved indoors. When the weather is too cold, bag protection is also needed.
Camellias, rhododendrons, orchids, sago palms, and banana shrubs have relatively good cold tolerance. If there is no frost or rain or snow, there is no need to rush them indoors. But if the low temperature is below 0°C, they must be moved indoors and placed in a south-facing room, where they can generally overwinter safely.
Five-needle pines, Buddhist pines, crabapples, and Chinese roses, commonly called low-temperature-type flowers and trees, have relatively good cold tolerance and generally do not need to be brought indoors; simply place them outdoors in a warm, sunny spot. Once severe frost or rain or snow occurs, temporary straw curtain coverings for protection are enough.
Management after flowers and trees are brought indoors is also very important. After being brought indoors, water consumption decreases. Generally, small pots should be watered once a week, and larger pots once every 1-2 weeks. If the potting soil is not very dry, the watering interval can be extended further. Apart from winter-blooming flowers and trees such as Strelitzia, cyclamen, and clivia, which need sufficient water and fertilizer plus additional phosphorus fertilizer, autumn-sown herbaceous flowers that will bloom in early spring the following year also need frequent fertilizer and ample water. For ordinary flowers and trees brought indoors to avoid the cold, it is enough to fertilize once every 1-2 months or simply stop fertilizing, to avoid excessive fertilizer causing leggy growth and reducing cold resistance.
October is the best time to transplant or divide spring orchids; orchid growers must not miss this opportunity. At this time, orchid growth is relatively weaker, and if the flower buds are not damaged during operation, flowering the following year will not be affected. To make division easier, watering can be controlled several days before division so the potting soil dries appropriately and the roots turn white and become softer, making them less likely to break during transplanting or division. But do not let it become too dry; excessive dryness is also bad for orchid growth.
② Autumn harvest and autumn sowing: Autumn is also the season for propagating seedlings. As the saying goes, spring flowers are sown in autumn. A large number of spring flowers such as cineraria, cyclamen, pansy, and corn poppy need to be sown at this time, and seedling-stage management must be done well.
As the saying goes, good seed produces good seedlings, so sowing must begin with seed collection. How can you collect the best seeds? Generally speaking, during the peak flowering period of flowers and trees, the climate is suitable and nutrients are abundant, so the seeds produced are naturally of better quality. Therefore, mastering the accurate seed collection time is the first rule. Of course, even among the same batch of seeds, there will be individual differences. For home flower growing, the amount of seed used is not large, so you can use the method of selecting seed by seed, keeping those that are well developed, regular in shape, and plump and full.
According to the different maturity times of different seeds, we can harvest the following seeds in each period.
Seed collection: In early autumn, seeds that can be collected include tree peony, moss rose, zinnia, iris, redbud, spirea, cypress vine, lily, mimosa, gotu kola, water lily, coreopsis, and lotus. In mid-autumn, seeds that can be collected include cypress vine, morning glory, balloon flower, zinnia, spider flower, iris, petunia, Chinese peony, mallow, amaranth, okra, Emilia, strawflower, periwinkle, cockscomb, mimosa, canna, Lilium concolor, and Lychnis. In late autumn, seeds that can be collected include morning glory, cosmos, okra, hosta, marigold, salvia, four o'clock flower, magnolia, Teucrium, wisteria, Weigela, camellia, crape myrtle, Cucurbita, ornamental pepper, China aster, Lycoris, torch lily, Japanese anemone, Sinojackia, dogwood, and goji.
The lifespan of different seeds varies greatly. Some need to be stored for a period and fully after-ripened before they will germinate, such as Sinojackia. Others need to be sown immediately after collection, otherwise their germination rate will decrease, such as tree peony and Chinese peony seeds, which must be sown immediately after collection or stored in sand. For example, water lily seeds must be stored in water. Generally, flower and tree seeds are dried after collection, put separately into small paper bags or cloth bags, and stored on top of a cabinet or in a drawer until sowing time, when they can be taken out and used.
Sowing: In early autumn, flowers and trees suitable for sowing include tree peony, primrose, cineraria, hollyhock, dianthus, pot marigold, pansy, daisy, snapdragon, campanula, stock, and wallflower. In mid-autumn, flowers and trees suitable for sowing include hosta, balloon flower, China aster, cornflower, pot marigold, hollyhock, mallow, stock, petunia, snapdragon, primrose, nasturtium, verbena, pansy, cineraria, and cyclamen. In late autumn, sowing of biennial herbaceous flowers should already be finished. A few perennial woody or bulbous flowers and trees, such as cyclamen and nandina, can be sown in pots.
Autumn sowing can be divided into 2 methods: open-field sowing and indoor sowing. For cold-hardy herbaceous flowers such as daisy, corn poppy, pot marigold, and pansy, open-field sowing is generally suitable, with the same method as spring sowing. For flowers with poorer cold tolerance such as primrose, cyclamen, and clivia, indoor sowing is used. Indoor sowing containers can be sowing boxes or sowing pots. A typical dedicated sowing box is made by nailing wooden strips together, about 10 cm high, with length and width of 40-60 cm. If you have a suitably sized packaging box at home, it can also be used as a substitute. A sowing pot is a clay pot with a diameter of 30 cm at the rim, 10 cm high, and many round holes in the bottom (available at flower markets). The specific sowing steps are as follows:
Step 1: First cover the round holes in the bottom of the pot with broken tile pieces, then spread a layer of broken tile granules at the bottom (smash a broken clay pot into bean-sized granules) or cinders and charcoal crumbs, 3-4 cm thick, to facilitate drainage.
Step 2: Fill the upper part with sterilized potting mix (usually mixed from 3 parts humus soil, 1 part garden soil, and 1 part sand), filling to 1 cm below the pot rim, and gently pat level with a pressing board.
Step 3: Sow the seeds evenly. The sowing method can depend on seed size. For tiny seeds such as primrose, mix with some potting mix, mix evenly, and scatter uniformly; for larger seeds such as clivia and cyclamen, place them one by one at a spacing of 1-2 cm, pressing lightly as you place them so that half of each seed enters the soil and half is exposed, then sift a layer of quartz sand over them with a fine sieve (at home, discarded window screen can be used) to cover the seeds.
Step 4: Take an ordinary plastic basin, fill it half full with water, and place the sowing pot into the water so water slowly seeps into the pot from the bottom holes until the surface is entirely moist, then take it out, place it in a ventilated, shaded spot on the balcony, cover with glass, and keep warm and moist. Be careful to turn the covering glass every day so that the condensed water on its surface evaporates, and leave a small gap for the potting soil to breathe. If the potting soil dries out, spray a little water. After seedlings emerge, gradually remove the covering glass, then gradually move them to a spot with ample sunlight (note: gradually; do not place them directly under strong sun all at once, or they will be scorched). According to the dryness and moisture of the potting soil, water promptly with a fine spray pot. After the seedlings produce true leaves, use a thin bamboo stick to gently remove overcrowded and poorly growing seedlings, keeping sturdy, even, good seedlings. When the seedlings have 3-4 true leaves, they should be transplanted into pots.
Methods for sterilizing potting mix include a dedicated drying oven. At home, you can buy sterilized bagged potting mix; you can also spread the soil flat on a rooftop concrete surface on a sunny day and sun it for 1-2 days; or put it in an iron wok and stir-fry over high heat for half an hour; you can also spray the soil with 0.5% potassium permanganate water, then cover tightly with plastic film and let it sit for half a day, remove the plastic film, and use it after 1 week. When sowing, to prevent dust from flying, you can first spray a small amount of water into the potting mix to moisten it slightly, but the water must not be too much, otherwise the soil becomes sticky and difficult to work with.
Most herbaceous flower seeds can be sown directly before sowing without any treatment. However, some seeds have thick hard seed coats or a waxy coating, such as cyclamen, and are best pretreated before sowing to promote germination and sterilization. The treatment method is soaking in water. For seeds with thicker seed coats, warm water can be used (water temperature about 60°C), and the soaking time is generally 24 hours. After sowing, spray more water to keep them moist. In addition, for seeds with hard seed coats such as lotus, you can file one end of the seed coat with a file, then soak. For seeds purchased from other places, to prevent diseases infecting the seeds from spreading locally, soak them in 0.5% potassium permanganate or 0.3% copper sulfate solution for 5 minutes, then take them out, rinse clean with clear water, and sow.
Some herbaceous flowers, such as primrose, pocketbook flower, and cineraria, need transplanting after sowing. Others are not suitable for transplanting, such as corn poppy and California poppy; these flowers and trees have roots that are too delicate, and after transplanting they tend to grow poorly, so they must be put into small pots 13 cm in diameter when the seedlings first open true leaves, and after they are slightly larger, removed from the pots and planted out, or direct sowing can be used.
(3) Autumn flower pest and disease control. Autumn is hot and dry, a season with high incidence of flower spot disease and powdery mildew.
Spot disease is caused by fungi and includes black spot, brown spot, and red spot, often occurring on leaves and fruits. In the early stage of disease, circular spots of varying sizes appear on leaves or fruits, fading green and turning yellow, with a clearly outlined outer edge. Mold layers or small black grains often appear on the spots, and in the later stage the diseased part necroses.
Powdery mildew is also caused by powdery mildew fungi and mostly occurs on leaves, young fruits, and tender branches. The lesions are nearly circular, with a thin layer of white powder appearing on them, and later many needle-head-sized yellowish-brown granules are scattered on the white powder layer. Removing the white powder layer reveals yellow spots of diseased plant tissue. Chinese roses, dahlias, and others are prone to this disease.
The fundamental method for preventing and controlling the above diseases is attention to hygiene, thoroughly eliminating sources of infection, and promptly cleaning up dead branches and fallen leaves inside and outside flower pots and on balconies and courtyards. If growing a large number of flowers, spray with a 500-1000 fold dilution of 50% carbendazim wettable powder for disinfection. Those growing Chinese peonies, tree peonies, chrysanthemums, and carnations can also spray 120-160 fold Bordeaux mixture of equal amounts once every 10 days, which can prevent tree peony red spot disease, carnation leaf spot disease, and chrysanthemum brown spot disease.
In addition, applying more phosphorus and potassium fertilizer to flowers and trees to enhance disease resistance is also an effective method. At the same time, pests such as aphids, red spiders, and whiteflies are also prone to occur at this time, so check plant by plant. Once found, immediately catch them carefully by hand. When there are many, spray dimethoate and omethoate to kill them.
Before flowers and trees are brought indoors in late autumn, check pot by pot and branch by branch even more carefully. If there are scale insect eggs on branches or trunks, immediately scrape them clean with a bamboo strip. Aphids are larger and easy to find, while red spiders are extremely small and mostly on the back of leaves, hard to notice. Therefore, check the back of leaves plant by plant. If small white dots are found, immediately spray with a dimethoate preparation to kill them, or wash with tobacco infusion (about 20 cigarette butts soaked in a bowl of water for 24 hours, then mixed with some soapy water or laundry detergent), and rinse clean with clear water after washing.
If fertilizer and water and everything else are normal but the plant seems to be growing poorly, you should suspect whether there are pests harming it in the soil. The simplest and most effective method is to repot and inspect to see whether there are cutworms, ants, earthworms, etc. in the soil; if there are, remove them promptly. When repotting, mix some carbofuran into the soil (for a flower pot 20 cm in diameter, about one small plastic spoon), or use 2 tablets of "Baihualing" sold in stores, crushed and mixed into the soil, which also has a very good disinfecting and insect-killing effect.
It should be specially pointed out here that in home flower growing, pests and diseases should be checked frequently, discovered early, and controlled promptly, using manual capture or water rinsing as much as possible. When pesticides must be used, use non-toxic and low-toxicity pesticides as much as possible, and spraying pesticides indoors is absolutely prohibited.
At this point, it must be specially noted that in home flower growing, you should check frequently for pests and diseases, detect them early, and control them promptly, using manual capture or washing with water as much as possible. When pesticides must be used, use non-toxic and low-toxicity pesticides as far as possible, and spraying pesticides indoors is absolutely prohibited.