Calendula, are you growing her?

Calendula

 (Calendula officinalis)  Pot Marigold

My Calendula was singing her own praises this morning. It is past time to plant our winter crops and calendula needs to come out for the cold frame this year.

"Pick me! No Pick me!," They chatter like school children to be sure I gather every single plants seed heads. Oh, and their flowers, "leave nothing to waste they plead".

 I collect the flowers in the early morning this time of year and put them in paper bags to dry. Calendula makes a great skin soothing oil or ointment. So one paper bag gets the seed heads, ready brown and dry or still a little immature and green. The other bag I use for the opened flowers.

Each plant fights for survival by every clever means they can find over these millions of years. Calendula reseeds itself very well as they grow and drop their curly seeds under themselves. Calendula is an annual so I knows it's job is to grow tall, flower, seed and die and get out of the way for their seeds to take off for another year.



Usually in the summer I put the bags of herbs to dry in the back seat of my car. Usually they are dry in a couple days. My car smells unique everytime I get in her.

After they are dry I will put the flowers in a jar and cover it with usually olive oil. I label and store it on a saucer in case it seeps. After about 2 months I strain and store in the refrigerator for skin rashes.

If fresh herbs are put in oil to sit the water in them can create a place for botulism to grow so I always use dry herbs in oil.

I use the dried petals pulled from the flower as a saffron substitute in rice sometimes.

There are smaller starts of calendula in the same area. I will dig and transplant them out in the front barrels. Calendula will flower well into winter until a solid frost.

I gave the worms the leaves and stems as I promised to utilizes all of the plants.

If you are asking yourself if I am crazy hearing plants in my head, I assure you, I may be crazy, but I am not dangerous.

Weeding is what you do when you haven't learned to harvest your weeds!