I know most of you come here for the knitting, but c'mon, you love gardening too! Am I right? Me too! The garden is so beautiful right now--mid summer, sigh, I love you so very much. Today I'm sharing all the beautiful zinnias that are growing in this summer's garden. This year I went with pastels, muted and bright, and sacrificed the big familiar zinnia blooms for smaller and more interesting blooms. Aren't they GORGEOUS? I'm so happy.

These zinnias are planted in the front of our perennial flower border. The border has wisteria, roses, hydrangeas, dahlias and Shasta daisies. I save a two-foot border at the front for summer annuals. Nasturtiums pop up on their own and I leave about half of them in, ripping out any that are going to take over, then I over-plant with a summer annual I've started in the greenhouse from seed--usually zinnias.

This zinnia border is not a flower border that can be appreciated from afar. The blooms don't shout for attention, and because of that, they invite you to step in for a closer look. Take a wee walk; it's not far. On closer inspection you'll see how truly beautiful and individual (and quirky) the blossoms are: you might spy a thin neon-pink edge surrounding a neon-lime green center or a feathery domed pincushion sitting atop a single layer of plain petals. Each blossom is unique.

These zinnias won't be found in your garden center and are only offered as seeds. They need to be planted in a greenhouse or protected environment which is easy enough but does require a little TLC. The germination of these specialty zinnias is good, not great--a little spotty to be honest, but good enough. They do however transplant very well. All the shopping links are at the end, but in the meantime, enjoy the show. Next week I'll have a vegetable garden post. It's summer!

Behind the zinnias are dahlias, shasta daisies, cosmos and roses.

The bright pink hydrangea is underneath the wisteria pods that need to be trimmed. Next weeks chore.

The Queen Limes

The Starlights

The Pincushions