The Dreamland Zinnia is a dwarf variety with plentiful blooms on compact plants. They’re an excellent choice for home gardeners who want a lot of color without a huge plant.
Thanks to their long stems, they make excellent cut flowers and are a lovely addition to any flower bouquet.
Keep reading to learn all about this dreamy zinnia variety including growing tips, where to get fresh flowers and seeds, and even ideas for making bouquets.
Characteristics of The Dreamland Zinnia
Dreamland zinnia plants grow to around nine to twelve inches tall and ten to twelve inches around. The flowers are about three to four inches across with multiple layers of petals in a dahlia shape.
They come in shades of red, orange, coral, pink, purple, yellow, and white.
Flowers bloom early and keep blooming all throughout the summer months. They thrive in hot summer temperatures and are somewhat drought tolerant making them easy to care for when planted in home gardens.
They’re a perfect choice for adding a pop of color to your front porch or garden without taking up a lot of space.
Where to Get Some of Your Own
If you’re looking for potted plants, dreamland zinnias can often be found at nurseries and garden centers during the spring and summer.
To find fresh flowers for bouquets, check with your local farmers and farmer’s markets. You may be able to find them in the floral department at your local grocery store during the summer months as well.
If you’re interested in growing your own dreamland zinnias, there’s more information on where to get seeds below!
Growing Dreamland Zinnias at Home
Dreamland zinnias can be grown in the ground or in containers. They make a lovely addition to any flower garden or patio!
Zinnias are fast-growing plants that don’t require much care. They’re easy to grow, even for beginners, and don’t require any special skills.
Starting Seeds
To start seeds outdoors, sow them directly into the garden after the last danger of frost has passed. Zinnias like well-draining soil and full sun.
If you live in an area with a short growing season, you may want to start zinnias indoors ahead of time. It’s not strictly necessary because zinnias grow quickly and bloom early, but it does maximize the time you get to enjoy the flowers. Seeds can be started indoors up to six weeks before the last frost.
Maintenance and Care
While seeds are germinating, make sure to keep the soil evenly moist.
Once the plants are established, dreamland zinnias require very little care.
Since they’re drought tolerant, rainfall is usually enough to keep them healthy. If you live in a dry climate, or you’re growing zinnias in a container, you may need to water them once in a while.
To get the most blooms, it’s a good idea todeadhead your zinniasregularly by removing the spent blooms once they begin to fade.
You can fertilize zinnias if you like using abalanced fertilizer. Follow the directions on the package and make sure not to overfertilize as this can lead to excessive foliage and fewer blooms.
Pests and Disease
The dreamland zinnia variety is resistant to several diseases including Alternaria leaf spot.
The biggest thing you want to watch out for is mildew. When watering your zinnias, use a hose or watering can to water the plant at the base and avoid getting water on the foliage.
If you can, water in the morning rather than at night so if leaves do get wet they’ll have adequate time to dry.
The pests you’re most likely to encounter are spider mites and aphids. Deer don’t usually bother zinnias.
How to Cut Them
To harvest your zinnias for bouquets, trim the flower from the plant with pruning shears, scissors, or a sharp knife.
You can trim the stem to be whatever length you need for your bouquet, or trim it just above the node. To find the node, look for the place where a new stem starts branching out from the flower stem.
New stems and flowers come from the nodes so if you want to avoid sacrificing new flowers, always cut stems above the node. If you want longer stems for bouquets it’s sometimes worth trimming below the node, you may lose out on a few flowers, but more will grow on other parts of the plant.
Whether you cut above or below the node, your zinnia plant will keep growing giving you a continuous supply of flowers all summer long.
Where to Get Seeds and Plants
Check with your local garden center or nursery for young dreamland zinnia plants in the spring or early summer.
You may be able to find seeds at your local stores as well. If not, they’re available to order from TrueLeafMarket.Com. Seed packets often come with a mix of colors giving you a rainbow of colors with just one packet.
Making Bouquets
With their long stems and cheery blooms, dreamland zinnias are perfect for bouquets.
To make a simple bouquet with fresh zinnias, choose blooms in one or two colors and place them together in a mason jar. Take a strand of ribbon or twine to wrap around the jar and tie it in a bow.
To give your zinnia bouquet a more elaborate appearance, mix dreamland zinnias with other flowers or add some greenery. They pair well with many flowers in different shapes and sizes.
For a uniform look, pair zinnias with similarly shaped flowers like daisies, dahlias, or coneflowers.
For more contrast, pair zinnias with larger or smaller blooms like sunflowers, lilies, or coreopsis.
Tips for Helping Cut Flowers Last Longer
If you’ve spent time putting together the perfect bouquet, you’ll want it to last as long as possible! Use these tips to get the longest life out of your cut flowers.
Trim the ends of the flowers daily. Make a clean, straight cut with sharp scissors or pruning shears.
Remove lower leaves so there are no leaves under water. Change out the water once a day.
Wrapping up the Dreamland Zinnia
With their cheerful colors, compact size, and disease resistance there’s a lot to love about the dreamland zinnia!
Interested in more zinnia content?Visit my zinnia pagefor more growing tips, care guides, bouquet suggestions, and more!
- About the Author
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Sadie Teh
Sadie Teh has experience writing on a wide range of topics including gardening, outdoor life, crafts, travel, and more. She currently lives on 5 acres near Nashville, Tennessee, where she enjoys growing fruits, vegetables, and flowers (there’s always room for one more plant!)
Sadie’s writing is driven by a genuine desire to help people grow beautiful, thriving gardens while sharing the joy and satisfaction that gardening brings. With a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in education, Sadie’s background not only adds depth to her writing but also allows her to effectively communicate with a wide range of readers.
Sadie’s favorite things to grow are flowers (especially sunflowers) and tomatoes. When she’s not writing or working in the garden, you can find Sadie substitute teaching at her kids’ school, curled up with a good book, or poring over seed catalogs.
Sadie can be reached at stehwriting@gmail.com
