Growing Marigolds – Fill Your Gardens with Beautiful Blooms

Marigolds are extremely non-fussy and versatile plants to grow in your garden or indoors in pots and planters. Their bright and beautiful blooms are great companions for your garden residents throughout the summer.

Growing Marigolds – Golden Blooms

Marigolds are easy to grow, versatile annual plants and are popularly grown in gardens all around the world. They are called half-hardy because marigolds can tolerate a decent bit of chill, but eventually die if the temperature falls below freezing. Growing marigolds is also extremely gratifying because the flowers fill your garden with brightness with their warm yellow, cream, gold, orange, lemon and burnt-reddish colors. There are two basic types of marigolds, African and French. The African variety has taller plants with bigger blooms, while the French varieties are dwarves, with smaller sized flowers. The third variety, signet or rock-garden marigolds are the pretty ones. They come in different colors and are great hedge plants for your garden. Growing marigolds requires very little preparation as these plants can grow well in all kinds of soil, but well-drained loamy soil always works best. And most importantly, they need lots of sunlight as the hot weather helps them thrive well.

Marigold Seeds – Plant Them Well

You can either sow marigold seeds in pots or directly in the garden soil as per your ease. If you grow them indoors in pots, make sure there is sufficient light and warmth. Prepare the potting soil first by clearing any rocks or stones, or simply go to a nursery and buy the kind of soil you need. When working outdoors, use a small spade and dig up to around 10 inches. This helps to loosen the soil and aerate it as well. It will help to enrich the soil with compost or torn up leaves if it is too thin. This increases the soil’s ability to hold moisture well. Once you have broken any lumps and smoothened the soil, plant the marigold seeds according to the instructions on the seed packet and cover it with a layer or soil thinly. Keep the soil moist but not too wet. When shoots start appearing, let them grow a few inches before pulling out the weaker ones. Remember not to overcrowd the space between two seeds. If you plant marigold inside, check for moisture and dampness. Remember to plant the seeds indoors a month or six weeks before the last frost, or just when the garden soil starts getting warm.

Marigold Plants – Perfect Garden Companions

If you’re not sure about your green thumb, read up first on simple basic plant-care and growing tips. Marigold plants are very unfussy. They germinate within 3-4 days after seeding in warm weather, but it might take more time if you keep the plant indoors in cooler conditions. These plants are so hardy that marigolds are often used as container plants and their versatility makes them perfect garden companions for other plants like daylillies, etc. Also, they hardly have problems with pests, their scent repels insects and animals and their underground root system repel microscopic nemetods. They love the sunlight and grow best in hot and humid conditions, so a few days without watering them won’t cause any harm. But no matter how hardy they are, make sure to care for them as you do with the rest of your garden.