Zinnia · Brooklyn, New York, United States

When to sow zinnias in Brooklyn

Main outdoor window

5-19 Apr

The window this page is built around.

Timed from last spring frost

29 March

In Brooklyn, on your chosen risk.

Ready to pick

4-24 Jun

If you plant at the start of the window.

The average last frost. Half of all years are later than this.

Cautious Balanced Bold

Step by step in Brooklyn

Each window is a range, not a single day. Earlier in the range buys you a longer season; later in it buys you a safer one.

Start indoors

1-15 Mar

Four weeks before your last frost, under cover or on a windowsill.

Sow direct

5-19 Apr

One week after your last frost.

Plant out

5-19 Apr

One week after your last frost.

In flower

4-24 Jun

Sow in succession. A single sowing gives you a single glut. Sow a short row every 21 days through the window above and you get a steady supply instead.

Frost tolerance

Tender

Damaged below

0°C (32°F)

Days to flowering

60–80

Min soil temp

21°C (69.8°F)

Spacing

25 cm

Sowing depth

6 mm (0.2 in)

Sun

Full

Zinnias through the year

Against the frost risk in Brooklyn

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Zinnias

Frost risk Start indoors Sow direct Plant out Harvest Today

Why these dates

Direct sowing after last frost usually beats transplanting - zinnias dislike root disturbance and catch up quickly.

Killed by the first frost at either end of the season. Strictly a warm-season flower.

Seed packets and extension guides express timing as weeks either side of the last spring frost, because that is the only reference point that travels. Zinnias are timed from 4 weeks before that frost for an indoor start, with planting out 1 weeks after it, and this page simply resolves those offsets against the frost date computed for Brooklyn.

The median frost-free season here is 249 days, against 60 to 80 days to first flower for this crop counted from sowing. That margin is what decides whether a late sowing is worth attempting.

See every crop timed for Brooklyn →

Nearby

Zinnias in places close by

New York City 9 km Queens 10 km Manhattan 15 km The Bronx 23 km Philadelphia 129 km

Also in Brooklyn

Other flowers to time

Tulips very hardy Daffodils very hardy Dahlias tender Sunflowers tender Crocuses very hardy Peonies very hardy Calendulas hardy Hyacinths very hardy Sweet peas hardy Pansies very hardy Snowdrops very hardy

Growing zinnias in Brooklyn

When should I plant zinnias in Brooklyn?

Aim for 5-19 Apr in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 15-29 Apr - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.

When will zinnias be ready to harvest in Brooklyn?

Expect to start picking around 4-24 Jun, based on 60 to 80 days to maturity from the planting date calculated for this location.

How much frost will zinnias tolerate?

Killed by the first frost at either end of the season. Strictly a warm-season flower.