I sought seeds for this colorful and diminutive zinnia as a counterpoint to last year’s over sized zinnia disaster.

Back then, I bought the seeds for a variety called ‘Pastel Dreams’ entirely on the fact that it was described as powdery mildew resistant, but neglected to look at the size dimensions listed on the package. I was expecting your average zinnia but ended up with a monster plant that exceeded the listed height (5 feet) and grew to be several inches taller than me.

This year I decided to go with the smallest zinnia I could find. And this is it. ‘Red Spider’ is said to grow no taller than 30 inches and mine have stayed well below size so far. This is the first bloom from the seedlings I planted at my community garden plot. I look forward to more, possibly even enough to bring some back for a vase that can sit on my desk.