Can't Get Your Calendula Flowers To Thrive? A Raised Bed Might Be Your Best Solution
Calendulas are great for attracting pollinators or for adding fun touches to meals since they're one of the best edible flowers you should plant in your garden. Some gardeners even use them as a natural dye. Others grow them alongside cucumbers in the garden as companions. It's not hard to find good reasons for including these cheery blooms in your outdoor space, but some growers struggle with cultivating healthy plants. For those who find it challenging to get calendulas to thrive, relocating them to raised beds might be the solution.
These flowers are non-woody plants that are typically grown as annuals, but can grow as perennials in USDA hardiness zones 9 to 11. Their blooms are usually yellow or orange, but some cultivars are red, burgundy, or white. There's even a gorgeous variety of calendula called 'Sunset Buff' that puts on a floral show in shades of pink. The flowers grow on bushy, branching stems that reach up to 2 feet tall and wide.
Raised beds provide good drainage for calendulas to flourish
Calendulas are also known as pot marigolds, which should provide a clue about their soil needs. These flowers need good drainage, so if you have compacted soil where water puddles up, growing them in a raised bed can help. This alternative to growing in the ground ensures water won't remain pooled up around plant roots, as well as helping with nutrient uptake. Coupled with their needs for well-draining soil, calendulas also require a substrate that is moderately rich in nutrients for beautiful blooms.
If drainage doesn't seem to be the solution for improving your lackluster plants or they are already growing in raised beds, you should double check calendula's other requirements to make sure they aren't missing out on any of their basic needs. Situate them in full sun or part shade in temperatures below 85 degrees Fahrenheit for best results. If your plants are growing in the appropriate conditions but blooming has stopped, deadhead the spent flowers and you'll soon see fresh buds ready to open.