Want to grow infinite flowers without spending a dime? Saving seeds from your flower heads and sowing them in the spring can give you hundreds of flowers for free.
The scoop
Zinnias are long-lasting flowers that are native to areas of the United States. These plants are popular among gardening enthusiasts because they are easy to grow and pollinators love them. A new hack, shared by Leota Wilson and Mikaela Falwell (@curlycultivators) on Instagram, shows you how to have beautiful flowering zinnias year after year without spending any money.
In the hack, Leota and Mikaela show you how to save the seeds from your current zinnia flowers to sow the following spring. This involves six easy steps.
First, let the flower head dry completely. Then remove the dried petals from the flower head slowly and carefully. The seeds can then be separated from the petals and the petals discarded.
Next, put the seeds in an envelope and store in a cool, dark place until you are ready to use them. In the spring, take the arrow-like seeds and scatter them in your garden, and water them until the roots begin to grow. Now you can sit back and enjoy your beautiful flowers.
Don't forget to keep saving the seeds year after year so your garden always has zinnias for you and the local pollinators to enjoy.
How it's helping
Tips like these are great for making gardening easy while costing you less. The activity has been shown to have a number of health benefits, too. For one, research has shown that just 10 minutes in nature can help people with mental illnesses — that's one in five Americans.
Whether it's growing your own produce or installing a native flower garden, gardening is one fun activity that can benefit everyone, from boosting immunity to building strength and self-esteem.
Growing your own produce can also help you to eat healthier and ensure that your food is free from harmful pesticides. And you don't need a lot of space to do it. Some produce, such as tomatoes and lettuce, can be grown in containers or window planters, meaning you don't need a large outdoor garden to grow them.
What everyone's saying
The post received over 600 likes and numerous comments.
"Going to give this a try this year!" one person wrote.
While another shared, "Zinnias are so beautiful so the more the merrier."
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