Hybridizers: It can be fun to breed your own zinnias - Part 6, 4 by Zen_Man

Zen_Man wrote:
Hi Brenda,

An update on my zinnia breeding project. I discovered that I could remove the petals on the Wooly zinnias to expose viable stigmas arising from internal anther bundles. That means I can also use the Woollies as females, so that they can participate fully as breeder zinnias. The first photo shows a Woolly with exposed stigmas.

My first "break through" breeder zinnia was the tubular mutant. I have since had the star-tipped mutant to work with, which resulted in the exotic modification of tubular zinnias, the Razzle Dazzles, and now the Woollies. But I think the "regular" tubulars still have potential, and the remaining four photos show some of my favorite current tubular and exotic zinnias.

More later. I am busy with the outdoor zinnia endgame and the upcoming transition to indoor zinnia growing.

ZM