Sorry.... Planted them inside 4 weeks before the frost "free" date.

Ken,

For a variety of reasons your zinnias have gotten off to a rather bad start. You probably started them too soon for what you intended to do.

You can set zinnias into deeper soil, and roots can start from buried stems. Their growing conditions must have been very much not to their liking, because I have had indoor zinnias bloom as early as 5 weeks from when I planted them. I grow my zinnias under bright fluorescent lights with at least 16 hours of light per day. Zinnias don't get enough light on a window sill, and not enough day length. I start my zinnias in 3-inch square pots:

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If they are going to be inside for several weeks, I repot them to 5-inch square pots, and they can bloom in that size of pot. Actually, they can bloom in a 3-inch pot, but that is a rather sad sight of a zinnia being abused.

ZM

Thanks ZM,

Beautiful photo there. Those look great!

I am sure that everything I could have done wrong I did, well... maybe not everything because they survived. They definately did not get enough light. Next year I will put them under fluorescent lights and start them with better soil and bigger pots. Will just any old fluorescent light work?

I am off to add about an inch of soil. The biggest plants right now are about 6 inches and a few have buds.

I would plant them right in the ground rather than add soil, but I am affraid that the rabbits will eat them to the ground. I am assuming rabbits like zinnias.

Thanks again zenman!

Ken