FlowerZinnia
Zinnia
Zahara Double Fire is a compact zinnia hybrid developed at the University of Maryland that brings prolific, disease-resistant blooms to gardens across zones 2-11. This variety grows 8-12 inches tall on upright, branching stems and produces bright red-orange double flowers from June through frost. A cross between Zinnia angustifolia and Z. violacea, it combines the best traits of both parents: compact growth, exceptional disease resistance, and non-stop flowering even in hot, humid summers when other zinnias falter.
Photo © True Leaf Market
Growing Conditions
USDA Zone
2-11
Sunlight
Full Sun
Water
Moderate
Growth Stats
48 in
Height
9 in
Width
Spacing
6
Plant Profile
Sunlight
Full Sun
Water
Moderate
Zones
2-11
Size
48in H x 9in W
Growth
—
Care
Moderate
Hover over chart points for details
Highlights
Zahara Double Fire shines as a disease-resistant workhorse that actually improves as summer heat intensifies. The double red-orange flowers bloom prolifically without deadheading, and the compact 8-12 inch frame stays tidy in garden beds and containers. What truly sets this apart from garden-variety zinnias is its documented resistance to powdery mildew and leaf spot diseases, the two fungal scourges that plague conventional varieties during muggy summers. You get continuous color from June until the first hard frost without the constant battle against fungus that makes other zinnias disappointing in humid climates.
Common Uses
Zahara Double Fire serves as a reliable annual flower for summer beds, borders, and containers. Its compact, prolific habit and disease resistance make it particularly valuable in humid climates where conventional zinnias struggle. The bright red-orange double flowers attract butterflies, hummingbirds, and birds throughout the growing season, functioning both as ornamental color and as a living pollinator garden. Its tidy mounding form and continuous bloom make it equally at home in formal garden designs and casual cottage plantings.
Growing Timeline
No timeline data available yet for this variety.
Care Instructions
Start Indoors
For earlier spring bloom, start seed indoors 4-6 weeks before your last frost date. Sow in seed-starting mix and keep consistently moist until germination.
Transplant Outdoors
Set out seedlings and purchased plants after your last frost date once the soil has warmed. Pinching young plants encourages branching and a more compact, bushy habit.
Direct Sow
Sow seed directly in the ground after the last frost date. If desired, sow at 2-3 week intervals through the end of June to ensure continuous season-long bloom.
Pruning
Pinch young plants after transplanting to encourage a bushier, more branched form. Deadheading is not necessary for this prolific double-flowering variety, which blooms continuously without intervention.
Growing Calendar
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Companion Planting
Pests & Diseases
Ecology & Traits
Attracts Pollinators
Bloom Time
June To Frost
Attracts
BirdsButterfliesHummingbirds
Tolerances
Black Walnut
Scientific Classification
Zinnia marylandica 'Pas553645' ZAHARA DOUBLE FIRE
History & Origin
“Zahara Double Fire represents a deliberate breeding achievement from the University of Maryland during the 1980s. Plant breeders there crossed Zinnia angustifolia with Z. violacea to create a new hybrid species, Z. marylandica, specifically designed to overcome the disease problems that plague traditional tall zinnias in hot, humid summers. The name honors both Johann Gottfried Zinn, an 18th-century Gottingen botanist, and the University of Maryland where this disease-resistant breakthrough occurred. This cultivar carries the specific epithet 'marylandica' as a permanent record of its origin.”