I don’t think I’ve appreciated zinnias enough. When I was young, they seemed so ordinary—simple to grow from seed, simple to care for, and so abundant that they felt commonplace. With their headstrong colors, they lacked the delicacy or subtlety of, say, irises or lilacs. Yet now, it seems, I can’t get enough of them. Some neighbors down the street planted three large containers of them in July, and I was immediately seized with zinnia envy. The colors were so bright and appealing. Of course, I had to buy some of my own (these are Magellan Mix), and they are now the pride of my stoop garden–that portion of my garden that occupies the stoop and front stairs of our townhouse. Passersby regularly stop to admire them. And there’s a bonus, too. They’re perfect nectar flowers for monarchs and other butterflies.
