7 Zinnias with Extra Large Blooms
Zinnias are famous for their variety! Some of the best ones are the extra-large bloomers. If you’re looking for a gorgeous zinnia, start with one of these seven extra-large blooming cultivars.
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Zinnias fill the summer garden with their colorful blooms. For the largest impact, choose extra-large blooming zinnia varieties. They’ll fit nicely next to sunflowers, borage, and clover.
These annual flowers attract pollinators, making them superb for the vegetable garden and borders. Plant them among your crops to increase the number of pollinators in your yard and boost pollination rates. The more pollinators you have, the more likely your squash, tomatoes, and peppers are to set fruit.
Whether you like a blend’s variety or the specific qualities of a single cultivar, there are options here for you. Take a chance and try a new giant blooming zinnia with extra-large flowers this season!
‘Benary’s Giant Blend’
‘Benary’s Giant Blend’ is one of the most famous zinnia blends. It contains a delectable mix of six-inch-wide blooms in many different colors. With a single packet of seeds, you’ll grow yellow, peach, orange, white, red, maroon, and pink flowers!
The plants’ stems may reach four feet tall. Though they tend to stay upright, they may benefit from staking to prevent them from flopping or falling over. Keep them up with a cage, stakes, or a trellis.
It’s best to start plants from seeds outdoors. Plant them a quarter inch deep about one to two weeks after your last average frost date. In short growing seasons, start seeds indoors and plant them well after the final frost.
‘California Giants Blend’
‘California Giants Blend’ contains fewer colors than the previous mix. It’s perfect if you’re trying to interplant your zinnias among other flowering perennials, annuals, and shrubs.
This mix grows plants with red, purple, pink, and white blossoms that sprout multiple rows of petals. If you like creating cut flower bouquets, these zinnia plants are a must-have in your garden!
These zinnias have extra-large blooms and are long-time favorite heirlooms for many gardeners. They’ve been available since 1926! Save seeds from your favorite colored flowers, or save them from all four colors to have variety next spring.
‘Cactus Flower Blend’
Another beautiful mix, the ‘Cactus Flower Blend’ has uniquely shaped blooms that differ from the previous two! The petals are thin because of their rolling tendencies. They form tight curls that resemble cactus flowers, hence their name.
Zinnia petals are edible. Harvest the ones from this blend and add them to salads, charcuterie boards, and sandwiches.
‘Cactus Flower Blend’ zinnias are long-lasting. Dry them to make dried floral arrangements, or put them in fresh bouquets with sunflowers and other zinnias.
‘Giant Purple’
‘Giant Purple’ is one of my favorite extra-large blooming zinnias. It sprouts bright, intricately layered flowers with purple petals. They have so many petals that they resemble dahlias! Grow this zinnia in containers and put the pots near your front doorway to make a stunning entrance.
‘Giant Purple’ zinnias are best for purple lovers. They contrast well next to yellow bloomers like goldenrods, sunflowers, and chamomile.
Instead of using contrast, you can use similar colors to create a pleasing display. Grow these zinnias next to purple asters, blue lithodora, and pink roses for a soft and elegant look.
‘Polar Bear’
Though ‘Giant Purple’ is my favorite, ‘Polar Bear’ is Epic Gardening staff writer Melissa Strauss’s favorite. She loves the zinnias’ three to four-inch-wide blooms and their tall, sturdy stems.
White blooming zinnias match well with other white bloomers like moonflowers and white roses. Use them to create a moon garden!
Like ‘Giant Purple,’ ‘Polar Bear’ blossoms have many layers of petals that give them a dahlia-like appearance. They’re stunning cut flowers, and they look exceptional in the yard. Grow them in containers or raised beds, or plant them directly in the ground.
‘Señora’
The ‘Señora’ zinnia has extra-large, dahlia-like blooms, though they’re salmon-pink instead of purple or white. Combine it with other zinnias, or grow it alone to let its blossoms stand out.
These zinnia flowers reach three to five inches wide. Aside from using them in bouquets and arrangements, you can dry the petals for arts and crafts. Paste them to a canvas with other dried flowers, or stuff them into a clear jar for a bathroom display.
‘State Fair Mix’
Reaching five inches across, ‘State Fair Mix’ zinnias are truly giant! They have multiple rows of petals in colors like red, orange, purple, yellow, pink, and white.
These extra-large zinnia blooms can reach nearly four feet tall in optimal conditions. Grow them in moist, fertile soil with plenty of organic matter for the biggest blossoms. Amending the site with compost can help boost the garden soil’s structure and fertility.
If you don’t have compost, you’ll want to fertilize the soil once a month with a well-balanced organic fertilizer. Water it in with irrigation water so it reaches the zinnias’ roots.
