Taxon: Zinnia elegans Jacq.

Summary

Genus:

Zinnia

Family:

Asteraceae (alt. Compositae)

Subfamily:

Asteroideae

Tribe:

Heliantheae

Nomen number:

42258

Place of publication:

Icon. pl. rar. 3:15, t. 589. 1792 ("1786-1793"); Collectanea 5:152. 1797 ("1796"), nom. cons.

Comment:

conserved (nom. cons.) against the heterotypic synonym (Shenzhen ICN Art. 14.4 & App. IV) Zinnia violacea Cav., nom. rej.

Verified:

07/29/2009 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

56 (23 active, 16 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Basionym
Crassina elegans (Jacq.) Kuntze

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Zinnia violacea Cav.

No images

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Barrie, F. R. 2011. Report of the General Committee: 11. Taxon 60:1212. Note: conservation proposal recommended
Botanical Society of the British Isles. BSBI taxon database (on-line resource).
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Brummitt, R. K. 2009. Report of the Nomenclature Committee for Vascular Plants: 60. Taxon 58:287. Note: conservation proposal recommended
Demilly, D. et al. 2001. Liste alphabétique des principales espèces de plantes cultivées et de mauvaises herbes. Noms latins et noms français, ed. 7 GEVES-SNES, Beaucouzé, France.
Erhardt, W. et al. 2000. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 16. Auflage
Erhardt, W. et al. 2002. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 17. Auflage
Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen 1824.
Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
Kirkbride, J. H., Jr. & J. H. Wiersema. 2007. (1785) Proposal to conserve the name Zinnia elegans against Z. violacea (Compositae). Taxon 56:958-959.
Lee, Y. N. 1997. Flora of Korea.
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana. Note: = Zinnia violacea Cav.
McVaugh, R. 2000. Botanical results of the Sessé & Mociño expedition (1787-1803). Vii. A guide to relevant scientific names of plants 192. Note: = Zinnia violacea Cav.
Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
Torres, A. M. 1963. Taxonomy of Zinnia. Brittonia 15:15.
Vibrans, H., ed. Malezas de México (on-line resource).
Viswanathan, M. V. & H. Bhajan Singh. 1996. Potential industrial uses of some less well-known Asteraceae of India. In: Caligari, P. D. S. & D. J. N. Hind, eds., Compositae: biology and utilization. 2:653.
Walker, E. 1976. Flora of Okinawa and the southern Ryukyu Islands.
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	common zinnia	1	Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
English	elegant zinnia	1	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America. Note: as Zinnia violacea
English	garden zinnia	1	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America. Note: as Zinnia violacea
English	youth-and-age	1	Botanical Society of the British Isles. BSBI taxon database (on-line resource).
English	youth-and-old-age	1	Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
French	zinnia	2	Demilly, D. et al. 2001. Liste alphabétique des principales espèces de plantes cultivées et de mauvaises herbes. Noms latins et noms français, ed. 7 GEVES-SNES, Beaucouzé, France.
French	zinnia élégant	2	Demilly, D. et al. 2001. Liste alphabétique des principales espèces de plantes cultivées et de mauvaises herbes. Noms latins et noms français, ed. 7 GEVES-SNES, Beaucouzé, France.
German	Garten-Zinnie	2	Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen 1824.
German	Pracht-Zinnie	2	Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen 1824.
German	Zinnie	2	Erhardt, W. et al. 2000. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 16. Auflage
Japanese Rōmaji	hyaku-nichi-sō	2	Walker, E. 1976. Flora of Okinawa and the southern Ryukyu Islands.
Swedish	zinnia	2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
Transcribed Korean	baegilhong	2	Lee, Y. N. 1997. Flora of Korea.

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Durango		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Nuevo León		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sinaloa		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sonora		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Campeche		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Colima		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guerrero		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Hidalgo		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Jalisco		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	México		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Michoacán de Ocampo		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Morelos		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Nayarit		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Oaxaca		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Puebla		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Quintana Roo		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Tabasco		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Yucatán		Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
2	Cultivated					also cult.
3	Adventive	Europe	Middle Europe	Czech Republic			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
3	Adventive	Europe	Middle Europe	Germany			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
3	Adventive	Europe	Middle Europe	Hungary			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
3	Adventive	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Romania			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
3	Adventive	Europe	Southwestern Europe	Portugal			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Bosnia and Herzegovina			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Italy			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Europe	Southwestern Europe	France			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Connecticut		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Ohio		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Pennsylvania		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	South-Central U.S.A.	United States	Texas		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Florida		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Georgia		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Kentucky		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Louisiana		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	North Carolina		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	South Carolina		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil			Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Caribbean	Cuba			FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Caribbean	Hispaniola			Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Caribbean	St. Lucia			Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Caribbean	United States	Puerto Rico		Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Central America	Costa Rica			FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Central America	Panama			Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela			Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Western South America	Bolivia			FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Western South America	Peru			Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
6	Other					exact native range in Mexico obscure

Native
Northern America

NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Durango, Nuevo León, Sinaloa, Sonora]
SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Campeche, Colima, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Michoacán de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Puebla, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, Yucatán]

Cultivated (also cult.)
Adventive
Europe

MIDDLE EUROPE: Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE: Romania
SOUTHWESTERN EUROPE: Portugal

Naturalized
Europe

SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy
SOUTHWESTERN EUROPE: France

Northern America

NORTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [Connecticut, Ohio, Pennsylvania]
SOUTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina]
SOUTH-CENTRAL U.S.A.: United States [Texas]

Southern America

CARIBBEAN: Hispaniola, Cuba, St. Lucia, United States [Puerto Rico]
CENTRAL AMERICA: Costa Rica, Panama
NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Venezuela
BRAZIL: Brazil
WESTERN SOUTH AMERICA: Bolivia, Peru

Other (exact native range in Mexico obscure)

Reference(s)

Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Environmental	ornamental		Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
Environmental	ornamental		Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen 1824.

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=42258. Accessed 12 May 2026.