🌱Doc's Pantry Garden Almanac

The Garden Almanac

The skin-healing flower that blooms till hard frost

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Calendula / Pot Marigold (Calendula officinalis)

The skin-healing flower that blooms till hard frost

🔍 How to identify it

Sticky, aromatic light-green lance leaves; bright yellow-to-orange daisy flowers 40-70 mm across that close at night; curved 'C'-shaped seeds. Resinous scent.

👀 Look-alikes

Don't confuse with true marigold (Tagetes) — different plant. Calendula petals are the edible/medicinal ones.

🤝 Companion planting

Plant near:
tomatobrassicasmost vegetables
FamilyAsteraceae (daisy family)
Hardiness zone2-11 (annual, self-seeds)
SunFull sun to part shade
WaterModerate
SoilAverage, well-drained; tolerant
Spacing20-30 cm
Sowing / startingDirect-sow around last frost; frost-tolerant and self-sows freely
HarvestPick open flowers through the season — deadheading brings more; dry petals for salve
Common pestsA trap crop that lures aphids away from vegetables; draws hoverflies and bees.

🧺 What it's good for

Petals in salve/oil for skin; edible in salads. A workhorse companion and pollinator flower.

Plant identification here is educational — never eat, forage, or medicate with a wild plant on the basis of a website alone. Many edible plants have toxic look-alikes. When in doubt, grow from known seed, or confirm with an expert before you harvest.