My Accidental Experiment – Comparing Indoor and Outdoor Zinnia Growth, Days 11-21

Day 15

Outdoor update

The outdoor zinnias have endured a few temperature dips below freezing, and have handled them quite well. Their position in the front yard could not be better. They receive unobstructed sunlight practically from dawn till dusk. Second sets of leaves are starting to grow, and the plants look very healthy overall.

Indoor Update

The indoor zinnias are doing ok– they were starting to look leggy, so we ordered another grow light and hung it above all our seedlings. We also started rotating the seed cells to try and balance their angles of exposure.

I originally questioned my hypothesis, thinking that the outdoor zinnias may be doing better than the indoor… But looking at the images of the flowers next to each other, I think it my hypothesis may be holding strong.

Day 21

On Day 21, 3 weeks after planting, the zinnias appear pretty similar to one another. The largest ones of each method look to be about the same size. The indoor ones have leaves that are slightly more opened.

A note about future segments…

An unprecedented cold snap has hit Central Texas, and the zinnia seedlings are not likely to survive. While I hope that isn’t the case, this post may be the final of this “series.”