Marigold Seeds - Cempasúchil
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Tagetes erecta — the Mexican marigold, called cempasúchil from the Nahuatl cempohualxochitl, the twenty flower. This is the marigold carried to graves and laid along ofrendas for Día de los Muertos, and the one whose scent is said to guide the dead home.
Brilliant orange-gold blooms on tall, strong stems. It is the warm end of the autumn garden — the colour that makes the dark pumpkins and near-black flowers around it read as deliberate rather than gloomy.
How to grow
- Sun: Full sun. A little afternoon shade is tolerated.
- Sow: 1/8 inch deep, barely covered.
- Start: Indoors 4 to 8 weeks before your last frost, or direct sow once frost has passed.
- Germination: 4 to 7 days at 75 to 80°F.
- Space: 12 to 18 inches apart.
- Height: Varies by strain. Tall types reach 3 to 4 feet.
- Bloom: Roughly 70 to 90 days from transplant.
In Florida
UF/IFAS gives zone 9 two planting windows for Tagetes erecta: March through April and September through November. Summer is the hard season here — mites and caterpillars take the foliage in central Florida heat, so the spring and fall windows are the ones that pay off. For blooms timed to the first days of November, start seed in late July or early August.
For cutting
Cut when the flowers are just beginning to open. Stems run 24 to 32 inches. Hold at 36 to 41°F; vase life is a week or more, and no floral preservative is needed.
Seldom damaged by deer. Butterflies and bees work the flowers hard.
Non-GMO heirloom seed, open-pollinated. Save seed from the best plants and it comes back true.
Packet artwork and paper color may vary slightly from the packet shown.
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