Many people know and love tall zinnias that are used for cut flowers. However, there are many smaller zinnias that are equally beautiful and useful in the garden. When it comes to small zinnia plants, you have the choice of lots of small flowers or impressive large flowers on small plants. Like their taller brethren, there is a wide range of colors to please even the pickiest gardener or hippest fashionista who needs the perfect shade to compliment her latest handbag.

Let’s explore some different options for colorful bedding plants that thrive in heat and humidity and bloom for a long season. 

Compact Zinnias with Small Flowers

These plants have small flowers on compact plants and are useful for edging the flower garden or for large-scale bedding where you need an easy-to-grow low-maintenance flower for summer and fall color.

Profusion Zinnias

Hard-working is how one of my garden buddies describes Profusion zinnias. The Profusion series of zinnias are bedding plants that grow only 12 to 15 inches tall and wide and bloom from early summer until frost brings an end to their garden party in autumn. The Profusion series comes in a wide variety of colors and in either single or double flower forms.

Here are my three favorite Profusion zinnias:

1. Profusion Red Zinnia – pure red flowers cover compact plants; this new variety won the 2017 AAS Award and 2018 Fleuroselect Gold Medal
2. Zinnia Profusion Double Deep Salmon – Fully-double salmon flowers with golden centers
3. Profusion Fire Zinnia – bicolor red and orange flowers add hot color to the landscape

Chippendale Zinnia

This novelty zinnia has small single bicolor flowers that grow to 16 inches tall and spread 12 inches wide. The primary flower color is mahogany with a golden-orange rim. It is a Zinnia haageana variety that thrives in heat. While this zinnia can be hard to find in seed catalogs, it is worth seeking out if you really like multi-colored flowers.

Crystal Zinnias

Crystal zinnias originated from a heirloom Mexican species (Zinnia haageana) and thrive in heat and tolerate a little more drought than most other zinnias discussed here. These compact plants have long, narrow leaves and cute single daisy flowers in either white or orange. The plants reach 12 inches tall and spread only 6 to 8 inches wide. Use as edging plant or plant in drifts in bare areas between shrubs. I especially like them between drought-tolerant shrubs and succulents in my high-desert garden in Arizona (although they thrived in the heat, humidity, and clay soil in my Georgia garden, too). If they are happy in your garden, they will self-sow for years. You can sometimes find these for sale in cell packs in the garden center, but they are so easy to start from seed that you may want to save the money and sow them where you want them to bloom. Here are the two varieties I have grown.

1. Crystal Orange – One to two inch single orange daisies bloom all summer
2. Crystal White – unstoppable white flowers cover the plants all season long

Lilliput Zinnias

Lilliput Mix Zinnias are upright, compact plants that have charming, fully-double, cone-shaped flowers. The 1 ½” flowers can be white, pink, mauve, or violet and are really cute. I use these plants to edge the vegetable garden to attract pollinators to my tomatoes and peppers. Since the plants only reach 18 inches tall and spread 12 inches, you can use them as edging, bedding, or in containers. I also use the stems in bouquets to fill in between larger zinnias and dahlias in vases. These flowers are too cute not to have in the garden. You can only find the seeds in mixed-color packets. Average disease resistance and drought tolerance.

Persian Carpet Zinnias

Persian Carpet zinnias are another dwarf variety with warm, multi-colored flowers. Just like the Crystal Zinnia series, Persian Carpet zinnias belong to the Mexican species Zinnia haageana. These compact plants only grow to 16 inches tall and spread 12 inches wide which makes them taller and wider than Crystal zinnias. The double, mini-dahlia-like flowers are two inches wide and bloom from summer to frost if they are occasionally deadheaded. Flower color ranges from burgundy, yellow, mahogany, orange, and gold and each flower typically has two or more colors. Persian Carpet zinnias tolerate dry winds and drought better than many other varieties. Experts love this zinnia strain, too. In 1952, Persian Carpet zinnias were awarded the highly coveted All American Selection (AAS) because it thrives in gardens throughout American. Under ideal conditions, this variety can bloom in less than 60 days when grown from seed. Tougher than most; disease resistant.

Red Spider Zinnias

This unusual dwarf zinnia (Zinnia tenuifolia ‘Red Spider’) has narrow red pedals that radiate from red-brown centers. The plants grow 18 to 24 inches tall and 8 to 10 inches wide. Some people find this zinnia to be not to their liking, but I enjoy its unique look. Flowers are 1 ¼” wide. Expect rapid growth in warm soil.

Thumbelina Zinnias

Thumbelina zinnias are among the smallest zinnias you can grow. They are useful as an edging plant since they only grow and spread 6 inches. The 1 ½ inch flowers are fully double and come in a mix of colors. Cute doesn’t even begin to describe these petite plants. These precocious plants start blooming when they are only 3 inches tall and continue until fall.

Zahara Zinnia

If Zahara Zinnias were high school students, these hardworking plants would be voted “most likely to succeed”. Derived from Zinnia marylandica, Zahara zinnias have the ability to keep blooming through the Dog Days of summer even in the deep south. The compact plants grow to 12 to 18 inches tall and spread nearly as wide. Flowers are 2 ½ inches wide and smother the plant in color. You don’t have to wait long for results because the plants can bloom in five to six weeks from seed. The foliage is the most disease-resistant of all zinnias. Zahara zinnias made their first public appearance at the Olympic Games in Beijing, China. These are the ones you have to try in your garden.

1. Zahara Starlight Rose – This is one of the coolest zinnias ever; bicolored flowers have rose centers radiating out into white outer petals.
2. Zahara Sunburst – Expect abundant bicolor flowers in shades of gold, orange, red, and red-orange; thrive on reflected heat from pavement or walls
3. Zahara Double Raspberry Ripple – fully double flowers are a mix of raspberry-red with creamy-white stripes down the center of each petal.

Small Zinnias With Big Flowers

Not every dwarf zinnia has small flowers. These zinnia varieties are bred to be short without sacrificing flower size.

Magellan Series Zinnias

If you love big zinnia flowers but do not have the space for 48 inch tall plants, the Magellan Zinnia series is for you. These vigorous plants only grow a foot tall and two feet wide but have stunningly beautiful 5 inch wide flowers. It is quite a sight to see. They look great in the garden and really excel when planted in pots. If big flowers are compact plants are your thing, consider growing the following Magellan Zinnias:

1. Magellan Ivory – lovely ivory-white flowers bloom heavily all summer
2. Magellan Pink – rose pink flowers are attractive in the garden or in containers; uniform plants look good in the heat
3. Magellan Cherry – fully double cherry-red flowers are stunning in the summer and fall

Dreamland Zinnias

Compact zinnia plants do not have to sacrifice flower size for small plant size. Dreamland zinnia is another small zinnia plant that doesn’t skimp on flower size. Although the plants only grow to 12 inches tall, they have 4 inch wide double flowers reminiscent of dahlias.

1. Dreamland Pink Zinnia – Compact plants with clear pink flowers
2. Dreamland Yellow Zinnia – Bright yellow flowers
3. Dreamland Coral – Coral-orange flowers cover the compact plants; blooms in seven to eight weeks after sowing

Peter Pan Zinnias

Peter Pan is an older strain of large-flowered, dwarf zinnias. Plants grow 12 inches tall and spread 8 inches wide. This variety is usually sold in mixed colors and have fully double flowers that reach 3 ½ inches wide. Foliage is broad and green and serves as a nice foil for the flowers. Good in pots or as bedding plants. Easy to grow.

Zinnita Zinnias

This is another low-growing zinnia with large flowers that works great in pots and window boxes. The compact plants grow seven to eight inches tall and wide and stay bushy and compact. Flowers are two inches wide and fully double. Make sure you deadhead spent flowers to encourage more blooms.

1. Zinnita Scarlet – scarlet red flowers are full and resemble small dahlias
2. Zinnita Orange – tangerine orange flowers are two inches wide
3. Zinnita White – reliable white flowers stay pristine for a long time.

How to Grow Zinnias

Zinnias are among the easiest annual flowers to grow. Seeds can be easily started outdoors after the soil has warmed. Seeds germinate in 5 to 7 days and grow rapidly. Expect blooms to start in six to nine weeks after sowing. If you want to get your plants started early indoors, sow 4 weeks before your last frost date in spring and transplant after all danger of frost has passed. Plant in amended soil that drains well. Topdress with compost or add fertilizer a couple times during the season to keep the plants vigorous and blooming till frost. Plant in full sun. Water during prolonged dry periods.

If you want to purchase plants from the nursery or big-box garden center, transplant seedlings after all danger of frost has passed. Water the seedlings well until established.

Remove spent flowers to encourage more flowers and prevent the plants from putting their energy into seed production.

Zinnias are awesome plants for the summer garden. Plant some in your garden and enjoy the color and keep the butterflies happy.