The marigold should not be missing in the creative planting plan for the natural flower bed, the rustic cottage garden or the summer balcony. The versatile calendula also impresses as a cut flower, bee pasture, medicinal and culinary plant. As if that weren't enough, the summer flower provides effective support in the kitchen garden and promotes the growth of vegetable and fruit plants. Reason enough to delve into the following answers to frequently asked questions about professional cultivation.
How do I cultivate marigolds correctly?
To cultivate marigolds, plant them in May in a sunny to partially shaded location in nutrient-rich garden soil. Water moderately and fertilize potted plants every 3-4 weeks. Remove spent flowers regularly for a long blooming period from May to November.
Planting marigolds correctly
Immigrated to us from the Mediterranean region ages ago, marigolds have no frost hardiness whatsoever. Therefore, only plant the calendula in the bed from the beginning/mid of May. The following short instructions show how to do it correctly:
- Remove weeds and loosen the garden soil in a sunny to partially shaded location
- Dig small pits at a distance of 25 cm to enrich the soil with compost and horn shavings
- Do not unpot the young plants until the root balls have been soaked in water
- Insert a marigold in the middle of each planting hole and fill it with soil up to the bottom pair of leaves
Press the soil with your hands. Finally, water regularly on the day of planting and afterwards to promote rooting.read more
Care tips
If Calendula is given the following care program, the flowers will thank you for your little effort with a never-ending, romantic bloom:
- Dries the soil surface, water moderately without causing waterlogging
- Marigolds in the bed do not require additional nutrients
- Fertilize potted flowers liquidly every 3-4 weeks from June until the end of the flowering period
- Regularly cleaning out withered flowers keeps the re-blooming going
If you leave a few withered heads on the stem from August onwards, they will turn into bizarrely shaped seed heads. Thanks to this caution, self-sowing is guaranteed for the next year.
Which location is suitable?
In a sunny to partially shaded location, marigolds bloom tirelessly until well into autumn. The daisy family achieves this floral feat in any normal garden soil, as long as it is nutrient-rich, calcareous, permeable and free of waterlogging.read more
The correct planting distance
While a single marigold appears lonely and abandoned in a bed, a picturesque garden picture unfolds in groups. Place the young calendula in the soil at a planting distance of 25-30 cm. You can also separate your seedlings outdoors at this distance. In the balcony box and pot, reduce this distance to 15-20 cm due to the special spatial conditions.
What soil does the plant need?
A standard garden soil offers marigolds the best conditions. Look for nutritious, medium-heavy soil that can be calcareous and fresh to sandy-dry in texture. In the pot and balcony box, we recommend using standard potting soil (€6.00 on Amazon), which you can optimize with a little sand or perlite.
What is the best time to plant?
For ready-grown calendula, the exodus of the ice saints heralds the beginning of the planting season. Once Cold Sophie has finally said goodbye on May 15th, there is usually no longer any threat of frost. However, the time window for direct sowing of winter-hardy marigold seeds opens at the end of March/beginning of April.
When is flowering time?
Clean out wilted flower heads regularly. This creates a well-groomed appearance and ensures that the subsequent calendula buds are not prevented from developing. This effort is rewarded with a never-ending flowering period from May/June to October/November.read more
Cut marigolds correctly
To use the marigold as a nostalgic vase decoration or for the romantic Biedermeier bouquet, cut off the most beautiful stems with the flowers that have just opened. However, if you would like to use the outer petals as a substitute for saffron or as a food decoration, wait a few days so that the calendula can soak up plenty of sun for its full aroma. We also recommend cutting off the spent heads down to the next bud. In this way you clear the way for new flowers to bloom until the first frost.
Watering marigolds
A constant water supply is one of the main pillars in the professional care of Calendula. Always water your romantic flower beauties when the surface of the soil or substrate has dried out. Check the current watering requirement using a thumb test to avoid accidentally causing waterlogging.
Fertilize marigolds properly
Regular fertilization of marigolds is not absolutely necessary in the cottage garden, vegetable patch or in borders. Here they make do with what the planting neighbors leave behind. If calendula spread their picturesque flower magic in a pot or flower box, you cannot avoid a regular supply of nutrients. In the pre-fertilized substrate, the supplies are used up within 6 weeks. Therefore, from the end of June/beginning of July, fertilize every 3-4 weeks with a liquid fertilizer for flowering plants.
Diseases
While the marigold stimulates the growth of neighboring ornamental and crop plants, it itself is not immune to disease. The fungal infection that primarily affects a calendula is powdery mildew. If a mealy-gray coating appears on the upper and lower sides of the leaves, cut off all infected parts of the plant. Then treat the flower with a mix of 1 liter of water and 125 ml of fresh milk (not long-life milk) until no more patina develops on the foliage.
Pests
You won't have to worry about pests on Calendula. Instead, marigolds ward off voracious snails, aphids and other pests from themselves and their plant neighbors. In the ecologically managed hobby garden, knowledgeable gardeners use these summer flowers as a natural protective shield for the valuable ornamental and useful plants.
Wintering
The majority of Calendula species are not hardy due to their Mediterranean origins. If temperatures drop below freezing, the flowers die. Thanks to an innovative new breed, you now have winter-hardy marigolds that bloom almost all year round. The WinterWonders line brings us different varieties that can withstand temperatures down to -15 degrees Celsius. The modern hybrids put on their flower dress as soon as the temperatures exceed 5 degrees. Winter protection in the form of leaves and brushwood is only required for these floral highlights in locations with bitter frost.
Propagate marigolds
Leave some flowers on your calendula in late summer so you can harvest the curling seeds in the fall. If this is too tedious for you, you can buy the inexpensive seeds from specialist retailers. You can save yourself time-consuming cultivation behind glass because direct sowing works like this:
- Plant a fine, crumbly seedbed in a sunny location from mid-March
- Spread the hardy seeds on top
- Work the light germs in very lightly with the rake and shower over
At 12 to 18 degrees Celsius, germination takes 7 to 14 days. Keep the bed constantly slightly moist and ideally protect it with a fine-mesh net. As you continue, separate the seedlings to a distance of 25 cm.
Marigold in a pot
Sow the seeds directly in pots and balcony boxes from April onwards. This saves you from having to purchase early calendula. At the same time, marigolds gain a better foothold in the plant soil this way. Scatter the seeds on the sand-enriched potting soil. The light germinators are then sieved with substrate to a maximum depth of 5 mm and moistened with a fine spray. Later, separate the strongest seedlings to a distance of 15-20 cm. This is how care runs in a regulated manner:
- Only water when the substrate has dried to a depth of 1-2 cm
- Pour out the coaster after 15 minutes
- Fertilize liquidly every 3-4 weeks from June until the end of the flowering period
- Clean out the withered flowers every few days
If it is the new, hardy Calendula WinterWonders, cover the container with bubble wrap before the first frost and place it on a block of wood. The marigolds, which are not frost-resistant, can either be disposed of or relocated to bright, frost-free winter quarters. At temperatures of 8-10 degrees Celsius, water only rarely and do not apply fertilizer until next spring.
Is marigold poisonous?
The marigold is full of valuable ingredients. There can therefore be no question of any toxic content in the medicinal plant of 2009. On the contrary, when used as a tea, calendula alleviates unpleasant stomach and intestinal problems and, when used as an ointment, heals all kinds of skin diseases. As if that wasn't enough, the flowers can be consumed without hesitation. In the creative kitchen, the colorful ray flowers act as a pretty decoration for cold and warm dishes.
Trivia
For centuries, marigolds have served as a reliable weather prophet for farmers and gardeners. Take a look at the flowers between 6 and 7 a.m. If they are already wide open, you can look forward to a sunny, dry summer day. However, if rainy weather threatens, the basket flowers remain closed. By the way, Calendula are the classics for the age-old guessing game: She loves me, she loves me not.
Beautiful varieties
- Fiesta Gitana: Large-flowered Calendula officinalis in wonderful yellow and orange tones; very beautiful cut flower; 30cm
- Neon: Premium variety with double, orange flowers decorated with a red tip; reaches a majestic 100 cm
- Spring sun: Robust field marigold that stands out in the cottage garden with bright yellow flowers; 50cm
- Porcupine: Surprises with orange tubular flowers reminiscent of cactus dahlias; 40-70cm
- Daisy: Compact Calendula nana with semi-double cup flowers in yellow and orange; with 20 cm ideal for the pot
- Soft ice cream: Modern look thanks to cream-colored, yellow-lined and lushly filled flowers; 25-30cm
- Red Buff: Innovative marigold blooming with cream-colored petals with rusty red undersides; 50-60cm
- WinterWonders Golden Glaze: Sensational, yellow, hardy calendula that tolerates down to -15 degrees Celsius; 40-50cm
- WinterWonders Amber Arctic: The orange counterpart to Golden Glaze with double flowers; 40-50cm