The flower genus named for German botanist Johann Gottfried Zinn is Zinnia. Carl Linnaeus used Zinn’s name for this genus of flowering plants in the daisy family, Asteraceae.
Johann Gottfried Zinn lived from 1727 to 1759 and was both a botanist and an anatomist. He became director of the botanical garden at the University of Göttingen in 1753 and later taught in its medical faculty. His anatomical work on the eye also left a lasting mark on scientific terminology.
Zinnias are native mainly to North and South America, with Mexico serving as a major centre of diversity. The familiar garden zinnia, Zinnia elegans, is especially valued for its bright colours and flower forms, ranging from single blooms with visible centres to densely layered doubles.
Zinnias are annuals in ordinary cultivation and thrive in sun and warm weather. They attract butterflies and hummingbirds, but they are not roses or dahlias: their composite flower heads are made of many tiny florets, a defining feature of the daisy family.