Growing calendula from seeds and planting dates
If a flower is not only beautiful, but also useful, it will definitely find its place in the garden. You can grow the well-known calendula from seeds by choosing the right planting time. It is also important to create conditions for the plant in which it will bloom profusely and for a long time.
Description of the plant
Planting dates for calendula seeds
You can grow calendula from seeds by sowing in open ground or for seedlings. In the second case, it will bloom earlier. Seeds of marigolds are sown in open ground in two terms: in spring, when the soil thaws and dries up, and in autumn, before the onset of stable frosts.
In the middle lane, the optimal dates for spring planting are the second and third decades of April. The soil is considered ready if the thrown clod of earth falls apart.
Autumn planting of calendula in the ground is carried out when night frosts become regular, the soil has not yet frozen, but warm days are no longer expected.
If you sow calendula before the onset of cold weather, the seeds will have time to hatch and then the seedlings will freeze. In order not to be mistaken in the timing, you can sow into the prepared grooves after freezing the upper layer, filling it with earth, which was prepared in advance and kept in a warm place.
The timing of planting calendula for outdoor cultivation may vary from region to region. An inexperienced gardener can check them with neighbors in a summer cottage.
Marigolds are sown on seedlings from late February to early April. After planting, the containers are watered with settled water and covered so that the earth does not dry out. Several times a day, the shelter is removed to ventilate. After the emergence of seedlings, the shelter is removed. Seedlings require bright lighting and moderate watering. A few days before planting in open ground, the seedlings begin to harden - they are taken out into the street at a temperature of 12-16 degrees. Despite the fact that the plant is cold-resistant, hardened seedlings will grow faster and will hurt less after transplanting.
Rules for planting calendula in the ground
If an inexperienced summer resident has questions - how to plant calendula seeds in open ground - then these rules are no different from planting other cold-resistant annuals - asters, marigolds, cornflowers, sweet peas. To decorate flower beds with annuals, they can be sown simultaneously.
For better flowering, marigolds should be allocated the most illuminated places.
It is advisable to fertilize the soil before planting calendula. In autumn, the following is introduced into the ground per square meter:
- 3-4 kg of compost;
- a tablespoon of phosphorus and potash fertilizers;
- coarse sand for heavy clay soils.
Potash fertilizers can be replaced with ash.
Seeds are sown in the grooves to decorate the ridges and dotted for flower beds. In flower beds, the distance between seeds should be 8-10 cm; for single plantings in flower beds, one plant requires an area of 20-30 cm2.Seeds are sown to a depth of 2-3 cm. From a greater depth, it will be more difficult for seeds to germinate. Spring planting is watered with warm water, in autumn the seeds are left in dry ground. The first shoots appear in 5-7 days, and after a month the seedlings can be thinned out if necessary. The ripped seedlings are transplanted to a new place. Calendula easily tolerates a transplant even during flowering.
In any photo with calendula flowers, you can see that healthy plants grow freely, not thickened, each is illuminated by the sun's rays. You also need to weed out in time.
Thickened planting, over-feeding, and long-term cultivation in one place increase the risk of black leg disease, spotting and powdery mildew.
Plant care
Since the plant is unpretentious, after planting calendula, care in the open field consists only in periodic watering, weeding and feeding. If fertilizers were introduced into the soil in advance, then you need to feed it with caution, not exceeding the amount. At the beginning of the season, you can fertilize the marigold nitrogen to build up green mass. It is introduced in the form of a liquid urea solution for spraying or watered at the root. You can use a diluted 1 in 10 solution of mullein, bird droppings, or nettle infusion.
At the beginning of flowering, plants can be sprayed with a complex fertilizer containing boron. This trace mineral contributes to longer and more luxuriant flowering.
Collection of medicinal raw materials and seeds
Marigolds will bloom longer if fading inflorescences are removed in a timely manner. But, if calendula is planted as a medicinal plant, then you need to pick off the flowers in the phase of full disclosure of the flower. It is best to do this in dry weather.
Calendula seeds ripen in late summer. They are large, gray-brown in color, resembling the letter "C" in appearance. Peduncles with seeds are cut off and laid out to dry in a dark place with good ventilation. After drying, they are winded and kept in cloth or paper bags in a dry room.
What are the benefits of calendula in the garden
The whole plant secretes phytoncides, which, if they do not destroy the pest, then scare it away. So, planting marigolds can clear the strawberry beds from the nematode. Also calendula in the garden helps against pests such as:
- bear,
- asparagus rattle fly,
- caterpillars of a hawk moth butterfly.
The green mass of the plant can be plowed into the soil, using as a siderat. This operation heals the earth from late blight nightshade and nematodes. When growing calendula from seed for green manure, the best planting times are early spring and August.
In spring, calendula is sown on green mass before winter plantings of garlic, onions, carrots, and at the end of summer - to prepare the soil for the next season.
If you follow these simple recommendations, bright sunny calendula flowers will delight you all summer and will undoubtedly bring many benefits.