Zinnia 'Profusion Orange'

I bought this plant because I thought it looked pretty. It grew up like a small shrub and I love it. Now I am collecting the seeds so t...Read Morehat I will have some next year too. The color is very bright and like others have said, it seems to be one of the few flowers to survive southern summers and clay soil without scorching. Even through our record drought this year, it has still looked beautiful with no water for very long periods. It is even still going strong and it is the end of October.

I always like growing it for the Butterflies and for its looks. I don't have to be concerned about mildew either.

This stuff did great for us. We have terrible clay soil and our backyard gets almost 16 hours of sun a day. It was pretty much the only t...Read Morehing that could survive the onslought of sun and drought, and it survived in style. Definitely getting more!

The profusion series of zinnias are new to me this year, but I will make sure to plant some every year from now on. They have performed e...Read Morextremely well through this extremely hot and dry summer with minimal watering and care. In mid August when some of the annuals are starting to decline and show signs of stress, these are still bright and beautiful.

This is my new favorite little flower. I planted it late last summer and it is still blooming! It is also much more rabbit resistant th...Read Morean most other flowers, which is a big appeal in my neighborhood. I am hoping for some volunteers sometime in the spring - what a joy that would be! I agree with the previous person's comment about the pink however, they were a bit of a dissappointment after the 'profusion' of the orange. Enjoy!

I bought a six-pack of these in late April. They are still going strong in September surviving the remnants of Frances and Ivan. I am c...Read Moreollecting seeds and hope to have many next year.

San Antonio, Tx.
The 'Profusion' series of zinnia was named an All American selection in 2001 and the noted horticulturist and au...Read Morethor Alan Armitage has stated that it is the best zinnia on the market. The praise showered on this series of zinnia is due to its consistent performance, ability to thrive in cool, warm and hot weather, early bloom set and tolerance of a variety of diseases. It is more powdery mildew resistant than most zinnia varieties.

Bushy and medium-sized in height, the plants produce single, 2-3 inch velvety orange blooms and bloom continuously all season. The flowers are excellent for cutting, although the flower stem is short, and have a good vase life. Butterflies love them.

Plant in beds or containers in full sun in fertile well drained soil. It will tolerate partial shade, but it requires at least 6 hours of sun in order to give its best performance. I fertilize mine monthly with a balanced liquid plant food. Do not over water and do not overhead water. Although deadheading is not necessary, it does encourage more blooms and adds to the "tidiness" of the plant. It will self-sow. Last year, spider mites were a slight problem.

The other colors in the 'Profusion' series are cherry and white. I have grown the white successfully, but the cherry have been disappointing for 2 years in a row for some reason. I planted them in a bed that is different than the bed in which I planted the white and the orange ones. After buying them in 4 inch containers and planting them, the colors of the blooms faded to a whitish color. The new blooms were not the color they should be either ... devoid of the bright cherry pink. This may be due to the fertilizers in the soil. I had conditioned this soil for pansies and it contained heavy amounts of bloodmeal and bonemeal.

I have planted the orange 3 years in a row and they have been the best performers of the "Profusion' series both in containers and in the ground.