Planting and Growing Marigolds

orange and red french marigold flowers with green foliage
Image Credit:
Pixabay
Botanical Name
Tagetes spp.
Plant Type
Flowers
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Partial Sun
Soil pH
Neutral
Water Needs
Moderate
Bloom Time
Spring
Summer
Fall
Flower Color
Multicolor
Orange
Red
White
Yellow
Resilience
Drought-Tolerant
Heat-Tolerant
Special Features
Attracts Butterflies
Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener
Almanac Guide to Herbs

Looking for a flower that’s as easy to grow as it is eye-catching? Meet the marigold—your garden’s golden MVP! With their cheerful hues and bug-busting powers, marigolds bring bright beauty and serious benefits to veggie beds, borders, and containers, and this guide will teach you how to grow them. 

Marigolds are typically kept as low-maintenance annual flowers, although there are a few varieties that grow perennially in warm areas. Native throughout the Southwestern United States, Mexico, and parts of Central America, these easy-going plants thrive in hot weather, can handle drought, and naturally rebuff many common garden pests.

Pretty orange, yellow, red, and copper-toned flowers delight when marigolds bloom from summer to autumn, but these plants also make excellent pest-repelling companions for vegetables in any season, and they’re particularly good at deterring nematodes and repelling whiteflies from neighboring tomatoes. Some dwarf marigolds stay under 6 inches high and are perfect for containers, while larger specimens can grow over 4 feet in height and make attractive additions to any flower or veggie bed. I personally love keeping marigolds in pots on my sunny porch, but I also plant a ring of dwarf marigolds around the perimeter of my vegetable garden to deter pests.

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Planting

When to Plant Marigolds

Young French and Signet marigolds can be planted from spring through midsummer, but tall African marigolds are slower to mature and should be planted as soon as the risk of spring frost has passed. Some growers plant marigold seeds directly in the garden, but I like to get a head start by sowing the seeds indoors about 6 to 8 weeks before my last frost date. Then, I harden the seedlings off when the weather warms and plant them outside when there’s no risk of frost.

Where to Plant Marigolds

Marigolds thrive in full sun and can withstand very hot summers. African and Signet marigolds are drought-tolerant, while French varieties can adapt to damper conditions. It’s best to keep these plants out of shady areas, though, as low light can reduce flowering and increase the risk of powdery mildew.

Although marigolds grow in almost any soil, they do best in moderately fertile, well-draining gardens. You can keep these plants in in-ground gardens, raised beds, or pots that are at least 8 to 12 inches in size. They make exceptional border plants too. 

How to Plant Marigolds

French marigolds can easily be started from seed, while African marigolds are trickier to germinate and are best purchased as young plants. If you want marigolds to thrive, blend compost or a balanced or low nitrogen, slow-release fertilizer into the soil before planting and then use these planting tips!

  • Starting marigolds from seeds: Fill pots, if you’re using them, with a quality seed-starting mix, then sow marigold seeds—indoors or out—by planting the seeds about 1/4 inch deep and spacing multiple seeds 1 inch apart. Keep the seeds well-watered and in bright light and thin them out to 8- to 10-inch spacing once they’re a few inches tall, or 10- to 12-inch spacing if you’re growing larger African marigolds.
  • Transplanting started plants: Nursery-started marigolds don’t need hardening off, but seeds that you started indoors will. After transitioning your plants to outdoor living, dig planting holes that are as deep as your seedlings’ root ball, plant the seedlings using the spacing guidelines above, and water them deeply to help their roots settle.

Yellow marigolds in a garden

Growing

Watering 

Marigolds are fairly drought-tolerant once established, but they appreciate consistent watering—especially during dry spells. I provide my plants with about 1 inch of water per week and water container-grown marigolds more frequently than the marigolds I’ve planted in my garden. Just be sure to let the soil dry out a bit in between waterings, and don’t water too much, as excess moisture can lead to root rot! 

Fertilizing 

When it comes to fertilizer, marigolds aren’t heavy feeders. In fact, too much nitrogen can lead to lush foliage with fewer flowers. A balanced, slow-release organic fertilizer at planting time or a light monthly feeding with liquid fertilizer throughout the growing season should do the trick.

Pruning and Maintenance 

Marigolds don’t need major pruning, but regularly deadheading spent flowers will encourage these plants to flower more profusely. It’s also wise to add mulch around your plants and stay on top of weeding. Too many weeds can compete with marigolds for soil nutrients and sun and lead to stunted growth.

If you want bushier plants, you can take things a little further and pinch off the tops of young marigolds once they’re established in your garden. This keeps the plants from becoming leggy and encourages more frequent flowering.

Seasonal Care

Since marigolds are typically grown as annuals, you don’t need to worry much about overwintering them. Just pull spent marigolds out of your garden when they die back with frost and chuck them into your compost pile. If desired, you can also collect marigold seeds in autumn for future plantings.

Field of orange marigold flowers

Harvesting

When to Harvest 

Once they’re mature, marigolds are bountiful bloomers, which can be left as is in the garden or harvested for cut flowers. If you’d like to make a marigold bouquet, the best time to pick flowers is in the afternoon when the blooms are half open or less. Marigold flowers that are fully open tend to shed petals fast and don’t last long in vases.

How to Harvest 

To harvest, simply snip marigold stems off at a leaf node using sharp, sterilized pruners or scissors. This will encourage your plants to branch out and flower more. To avoid plant stress, don’t harvest more than 1/3 of the plant’s blooms at once.

Storage and Preservation

After harvesting, place marigold flowers in a vase ASAP and remove any leaves that sit below the waterline. Cut marigold flowers typically last about 7 to 10 days in a vase, but you can also hang them upside down to dry and keep the preserved flowers even longer.

Pests and Problems

Marigolds are tough plants that are often interplanted among veggies and flowers as natural pest deterrents. But while marigolds aren’t troubled by many pests and other issues, they can still be vulnerable to a few potential problems.

Common Problems 

  • Reduced flowering can occur if marigolds are grown in low light or if they’re overfertilized with high nitrogen fertilizers.
  • Pests can also target marigolds, which is why they’re sometimes used as “trap crops” to draw aphids and other critters away from neighboring veggies.
  • Mildew can leave a powdery coating on marigold leaves and weaken plants over time.
  • Yellowing leaves may occur naturally as the leaves age, but it can also indicate that plants are struggling with low light or watering issues.

Common Pests 

Marigolds have few pests overall, but spider mites and aphids sometimes infest them. Usually, a spray of water or a weekly application of organic insecticidal soap is all it takes to get rid of these pests.

Plant Diseases

Marigolds may be affected by fungal diseases such as powdery mildew if conditions are too wet or air flow is poor. To prevent these problems, avoid getting water on marigold leaves, keep weeds down, and plant in well-draining soil. 

Types

 

orange and red French Marigolds
French Marigolds

When most people think of marigolds, they envision small plants with orange or yellow flowers. But marigolds come in a tremendous variety that can vary in fragrance level, flower shape and number, bloom time, and more. Here are the main types of marigolds that you may find at local plant nurseries and what sets each apart!

  • African marigolds, American marigolds, or Mexican marigolds (Tagetes erecta): These marigolds grow the tallest with big, full flowers on upright stems that stretch 3 to 4 feet in height. Despite the name, these plants are native to Mexico and Central America and thrive even under drought-like conditions. Try out plants like ‘Jubilee’ and ‘Safari’.
  • French marigolds (T. patula): This species of marigolds is smaller, bushier, and more compact and typically stays under 2 feet in height. Better suited to rainy conditions than other marigolds, French marigolds have more subtle flowers, but they still catch the eye. Try out plants like ‘Bonanza’ and ‘Aurora’.
  • Signet marigolds (T. tenuifolia): These petite marigolds do well in hot, dry sites and make beautiful edging plants as they rarely reach over a foot in height. Try out plants like ‘Starfire’ and ‘Lemon Gem’.

Wit and Wisdom

Flowers
About The Author
Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann is the Executive Digital Editor of Almanac.com, the website companion of The Old Farmer's Almanac. She covers gardening, plants, pest control, soil composition, seasonal and moon c...
Read More from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<span>Mike Wurzer</span> Wed, 10/16/2024 - 18:58
Hi I'm semi retired field crop agronomist in west central Saskatchewan, so I am attempting to learn about horticulture. The building has some cultivated areas along the walls were past residents propagated some marigolds and cherry tomatoes. I saw them coming up as volunteers and started watering them. With the marigolds should I prune them back to the ground now since we have had a hard frost or wait until spring
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Thu, 10/17/2024 - 11:26

Hi Mike,

It's great that you were able to give those emerging marigolds the boost they needed to make it through the season.

Outside of a few shrub varieties, marigolds are an annual flower that die back completely at the end of each season once the frost sets in. So you would not prune them, but rather remove the entire plant because it will not come back the following year.

What you likely cared for were the plants that came from the seeds from last year's plants. If marigolds are not deadheaded, they will readily self-seed the area and plants can/will grow the following year. If you did not deadhead this year as blooms began to fade, there is a chance that seeds fell to the soil once the pods dried and opened, meaning there will hopefully be marigold plants in that same area next season. If not, you can always plant new transplants in the spring once the threat of frost has passed.

Hope this helps!

 <span>Linda</span> Tue, 10/01/2024 - 06:38
My marigolds are beautiful and huge this year. I recently read that buried plants will benefit garden soil and I was wondering about that. I’ve always pulled the plants, let them dry and added to my compost. Any suggestions on how to utilize the plants at the end of the season? I don’t have any interest in drying the flowers.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Tue, 10/01/2024 - 15:25

Hi, Linda. After your marigolds have had their "day in the sun," you can cut them up into pieces and work them back into the soil. The thinking is that it helps to control pests that may lurk in the soil for the next growing season. But adding them to your compost pile is also a good place for them.

 <span>Pam Gouker</span> Sat, 02/10/2024 - 21:27
How about pictures of the various marigolds? Is “deadheading” and “pinching back” the same On a flower? Pictures?? Maybe silly but new to this.
<span>Vandy Bradow</span> Sat, 04/13/2024 - 14:34
Deadheading refers to removing spent flowers from their stems. pinching back means removing the tip of growth, flowers,buds, leaves, stem and all, from the central and largest stem(s).
<span>Judy</span> Tue, 10/24/2023 - 18:30
can you plant marigolds and mums around each other?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 10/25/2023 - 11:44

Hi Judy,

You can certainly plant marigolds and mums in the same garden area. Both require full sun and well-draining soil.

Just be aware that both can spread quite a bit so you will want to give some space between plantings. 

 <span>Karen</span> Wed, 10/25/2023 - 07:46
I have marigolds that have been reseeding themselves for a couple years now. How would I save the seeds to plant in other areas the following spring?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 10/25/2023 - 11:57

Hi Karen,

Instead of deadheading your marigolds, let spent flowers remain on the plant to dry. As the seed head matures, it will turn brown. To catch seeds you can place a paper bag underneath the spent blooms, but it is not always necessary. Once the seed pod is dry, remove them from the plant and allow to air dry for a few days. Then you can harvest the seeds from the pod and put in an envelope until you are ready to plant in the spring.