Calendula is a genus of about 15 to 20 annual and perennial herbs in the daisy family, often called marigolds; the common garden species, Calendula officinalis, is the one most grown. Give them full sun, average well-drained soil and regular moisture, and deadhead to keep flowering going.
Family
Asteraceae (Daisy family)
Grows as
Annual, Perennial
Light
Full sun, Part shade
Water
Keep soil evenly moist, but let the top layer dry slightly between waterings.
Soil
Average, well-drained garden soil or potting mix; tolerates poor soil.
Temperature
10–24 °C is comfortable; tolerates light frost, protect from hard freezes.
How easy
Easy
About
Calendula () is a genus of about 15–20 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants in the daisy family, Asteraceae that are often known as marigolds. They are native to Europe, North Africa, Macaronesia, West Asia and Western Himalayas and have their center of diversity in the Mediterranean Region. Other plants known as marigolds include corn marigold, desert marigold, marsh marigold, and plants of the genus Tagetes.
The genus name Calendula is a modern Latin diminutive of calendae, meaning "little calendar", "little clock" or possibly "little weather-glass". The common name "marigold", a contraction of "Mary's gold" used especially for Calendula officinalis, refers to the Virgin Mary. C. officinalis is the most commonly cultivated and used species, popular herbal and cosmetic products named "Calendula" invariably derive from it.
Safety
The flowers of C. officinalis contain flavonol glycosides, triterpene oligoglycosides, oleanane-type triterpene glycosides, saponins, and a sesquiterpene glucoside.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Calendula by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.