& shades of green in-between
In 1938, the weekly U.S. entertainment publication Variety referred to the ‘old-time zinginess’ of showmanship, providing the first printed reference to the fashionable adjective ‘zingy’.1 It seems entirely appropriate that ‘zingy’ should have entered the English dictionary in such close alphabetical proximity to ‘zinnia’. Surely, no other word so perfectly describes these vibrant, colourful, and showy plants. Originating in the Americas, with a centre of diversity in Mexico, the annual types popular in the UK are grown as half-hardy bedding plants. With continual deadheading, they flower from late summer into autumn, also providing long-lasting cut flowers, until eventually felled by frost.
For many of us, the familiar common names of the plants in our garden tend to trip off the tongue more readily than their scientific monikers. With the zinnia, it is an unusual fact that the common and official forms of the name happen to be identical: the zinnia belongs to the genus Zinnia, named by Carl Linnaeus in 1759, in honour of German botanist Johann Gottfried Zinn.
Yet, zinnias were not always perceived to zing with engaging pizazz. The flowers we now know as Peruvian zinnia (Zinnia peruviana), first grown in England in the 1750s, were of simpler and wilder form than the subsequent introduction of Elegant zinnia (Zinnia elegans). The image of a yellow Peruvian zinnia, produced by British apothecary and botanist John Hill in 1761, was labelled ‘Golden Scalewort’. This applied common term, which hardly screams zingy, was based on Hill’s impression that the petal arrangement resembled the scales of a fish.2
Sadly, the names these plants were historically known by in their lands of origin went unrecorded in contemporary European commentary. Nonetheless, one might expect the late 18th century seed suppliers to conjure up far more romantic and evocative promise in their catalogues than Hill’s ‘scalewort’: ‘Inca Treasure’ perhaps, or ‘Aztec Sun’ … Incidentally, there is no verifiable evidence to support the suggestions of many modern seed suppliers that zinnias were cultivated in the flower gardens of Aztec emperor Montezuma. Marigolds and dahlias are both known by Aztec names, suggesting a lengthy history of association with these ancient peoples; for zinnias, however, there is as yet no confirmed Aztec name or any verifiable contemporary reference.3 The zinnias in Montezuma’s gardens are an enticingly wishful image, although not an impossibility.
By 1800, it seems that Peruvian zinnias are referred to with greater reverence by some quarters of British society, the red form being described as “dark rich velvet zinnias ... and its purple-red blossoms seem as if a shower of gold had alighted on its petals.”4 The even more esteemed double form of Zinnia elegans was discovered in India in 1858, where zinnias had been grown possibly as early as 1786. Exactly how the double zinnia was developed at that time, whether beginning as a genetic mutation or exclusively orchestrated by human design, remains a mystery.
Today, the tall double or semi-double forms of Zinnia elegans with their pure, flamboyant colours, are perhaps the most well-known and popular in borders. In all their forms, whether dwarf, giant, simple, dahlia-like, cactus-quilled, hybrid, or heritage, zinnias are valued not only for their appearance but as a vital pollen and nectar source for bees, hoverflies, and butterflies. Zinnias help keep our late summer and autumn gardens alive with welcome winged visitors.
For a thoroughly fascinating insight into the history of the zinnia, and a wide range of colourful cultural connections, we recommend Eric Grissell’s (2020) A history of Zinnias: Flower for the ages, from Purdue University Press (the source of references 2 & 4 below).
To recreate a sweet-shop mix of tasty Zinnia elegans treats, try the warmly wonderful ‘Benary’s Giant Salmon Rose’, magenta-toned ‘Purple Prince’, volcanic red ‘Meteor’, fresh ‘Queen Lime’ and ‘Envy’, dazzling ‘Benary’s Giant Lilac’, the vintage glamour of ‘Benary’s Giant Wine’, and the sunny splash of ‘Golden Crown’.
References
1 Oxford English Dictionary. (n.d.). Oxford University Press.
2 Hill, John (1761–1775). The vegetable system: Or the internal structure and the life of plants, Vol. 2. Printed by the author.
3 Eric Grissell (2020). A history of Zinnias: Flower for the ages. Purdue University Press.
4 The Religious Tract Society (1800). The garden flowers of the year. Religious Tract Society.