How to grow Pot Marigold

Calendula officinalis

🌿 Herb 🌸 Flower 🌱 Grown each year

Pot Marigold (Calendula officinalis) is an easy-to-grow hardy annual with attractive vivid orange flowers. Its petals are edible, adding colour to salads or used as a saffron substitute. It's an excellent companion plant, attracting bees and beneficial insects like ladybirds (which eat aphids), while repelling whitefly and tomato worm. It's also thought to have medicinal properties, used in herbal ointments for stomach problems and other ailments.

At a glance: Sow mid April to mid June, harvest from early June.

When to sow, plant and harvest

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Sow outdoors

Harvest

Timed for a typical UK garden (last frost mid-April). The app uses your own town's frost dates.

Growing Pot Marigold: what it needs

Light: Full sun · 4+ hours a day
Watering: Regularly, especially in dry periods
Soil: Well-drained, adaptable, tolerates poor soil · pH 6.0–7.0
Spacing: 20cm apart
In pots: Grows well in containers
Feeding: Not typically required in good soil; can benefit from a balanced feed if growth is poor.
Harvest: About 60 days from sowing
Hardiness: USDA zones 2–11
Difficulty: Easy

Step by step

Mid April – mid June · around the last spring frost
Direct Sow Pot Marigold Seeds Outdoors
Direct sow thinly into well-prepared soil, 1cm deep in drills 30cm apart or scatter and lightly cover. Thin seedlings to 20cm apart later.
5–15 days after “Sow Pot Marigold Seeds Indoors (Spring)” · Mid April – late April
Check for Germination
Seedlings should emerge in 5-15 days. Keep soil consistently moist during this period.
14 days after “Check for Germination” · Early May
Thin Pot Marigold Seedlings
Once seedlings have developed a few true leaves, thin them to about 20cm (8 inches) apart to allow for proper growth.
7 days after “Thin Pot Marigold Seedlings” · Mid May
Ongoing Care: Water, Weed, and Deadhead
Keep plants well watered, especially during dry spells. Keep the area weed-free to prevent competition. Regularly pick (deadhead) spent flowers to encourage continuous blooming until the first frosts.
30–120 days after “Ongoing Care: Water, Weed, and Deadhead” · Early June – early September
Harvest Pot Marigold Flowers
Pick vivid orange flowers from June to October. Wash flower heads thoroughly before bringing them into the house or using them in cooking, as aphids are fond of them.