The Cottage Garden: Sunny Calendula

The marigold that goes to bed with the sun.

William Shakespeare, The Winter’s Tale

The Cottage Garden: Sunny Calendula, August 9, 2022.

While watering the garden last night, I spotted a new yellow flower tucked between the borage and cabbage. From a distance, it looked like a huge dandelion, but a closer look revealed the first calendula of Hidden Bluff. The first of many, many to come, I thought. Calendula is a prolific flower. The single bloom would turn into many. I knew that adding it to the garden would mean I would eventually have to weed it. However, I missed its sunny face. Having long been absent from my plant selections, I decided to bring them back to the fold and deal with what consequences may come.

A big black bumblebee was crawling inside the lone flower, harvesting from this new morsel in the garden. He eventually left but was quickly replaced by another, who decided to take a break from the borage. The sunny yellow is quite a detractor in the green jungle. Calendula is a low-maintenance and cheerful fellow that invites the right sort of insects to the garden party: pollinators and those that would prey on the uninvited. But there is another purpose they serve as a trap crop that draws undesirable pests to themselves. That trait alone merits a spot in the cottage garden.

Calendula soap, oil, bread- I have tried many things using this hardy and multifunctional herb. Its soothing and anti-inflammatory properties made it one of the first herbs I chose to work with when making products for my shop. They were big, thick-cut bars of golden yellow soap, the tops sprinkled with dried calendula petals. I don’t carry them in my store anymore, but I still remember them as one of my prettiest first products. Calendula also makes a wonderful calming salve when you infuse oil with fresh calendula petals.

While the herbaceous marigold doesn’t taste like saffron, it has been called “poor man’s saffron” and used in many dishes for its unique flavor and the pretty yellow color it imparts. The sunshine flower is described as earthy, bitter, tangy, and sweet. The variety we have tastes mild, green, and slightly herbaceous. It would be beautiful in food, but wouldn’t add much to the taste, if any at all. And while the scent doesn’t leave much of an impression, the yellow blooms and petals add beauty to your food and make great cut flowers for a bouquet.

As the sun goes down, the marigold shows its loyalty by closing its own petals and waiting till tomorrow to open again as the sun rises. There is joy in seeing this old friend again. He is steadfast and reliable, even with the many friends he will bring. No doubt I will grumble a bit when the time comes to weed, but the sunny disposition of this golden flower will chase that away.

Have a beautiful day!