Ah , the pungent flavour of marigold – their distinctive redolence tells me that summertime has most definitely get .

And once summertime is at full tilt , I love seeing their happy yellow , orange , and red prime lighten up my garden .

If you ’re a fan of marigolds too , you probably buy a flat or two every year to add to your own vegetable garden , or arrange in your flower beds or planters .

A close up top down picture of a variety of different colored marigolds growing in the garden, with soil in the background.

T. tenuifolia

But once you cross the line from lover to fanatic like I have , you may want to start maturate these annual from source .

We link to trafficker to help you find relevant products . If you buy from one of our tie-in , we may pull in a commissioning .

This open up your options to love exciting raw cultivar , and economise quite a bit of money in your horticulture budget , to boot .

A collage of photos showing marigold seedlings and orange flowers.

T. tenuifolia

determine whether to sow in your marigolds like a shot in the garden or start them indoors will need you to take a few factors into consideration : the length of your grow time of year , the type of cultivar you ’re planting , and how impatient you are for these annuals to fill your garden with flowers .

I ’ll go over each of these unlike factors , so you could determine which method acting will work best for you .

The three main mintage of marigolds found in US gardens are theMexican ( sometimes squall African ) marigold , Tagetes erecta , theFrenchT. patula , and thesignet marigold , T. tenuifolia .

A vertical picture of bright yellow and red bicolored marigolds growing in the garden, with foliage in the background. To the center and bottom of the frame is green and white text.

Another member of the Asteraceae family , Calendula officinalisis known as thepot or English marigold .

In this guide , I ’ll go over how to start the threeTagetesspecies from seed .

Here ’s what I ’ll underwrite :

A vertical picture of bright yellow and red bicolored marigolds growing in the garden, with foliage in the background. To the center and bottom of the frame is green and white text.

How to Start Marigolds from Seed

Why Sow Outdoors

Sowing semen outdoors is more square than get them indoors . There are fewer stair involved , fewer textile need , and you avoid the risk of transplant shock .

If you ’d rather forego an indoor ejaculate starting labor , there are some cases where you could get away with sowing marigold directly into your garden :

Let ’s lecture more about that last decimal point . How do you know if you have a long growing time of year ?

A close up of bright red and yellow marigolds growing in the garden on a soft focus background.

If you are capable to successfully produce warm - time of year crop liketomatoes , squash , eggplant , andpepperswithout concern about them being down by early frosts , you plausibly have a long growing time of year in your area .

On the other hand , if you have had issue with these crops getting rack up with early Robert Frost in the past times , you are probably like me and many other northern and high-pitched tiptop gardener who must deal with the challenges of a scant grow season .

Here ’s a more precise way to discover out if you have time to sow in these annuals outdoors :

A close up, top down picture of bright yellow flowers growing in the garden.

liken the number of frost - free daytime in your area with the figure of days the flora needs to reach maturity date .

If you do n’t know how many Robert Lee Frost - free days you have , you could promptly calculate them withthis tool from the National Gardening Association .

Just come in your zip code , and it will tell you the average number for your area .

A close up of small orange flowers covered with a light dusting of snow, fading to soft focus in the background.

Now find the days to maturity for your pick out potpourri or cultivar . This selective information is usually located on the seed packet .

If you ca n’t find this informationon your cum packet , Gallic marigold ( Tagetes patula ) will more often than not bloom in 50 - 60 day , while Mexican marigolds ( T. erecta ) need 70 - 100 day .

Signet marigolds ( T. tenuifolia ) often flower in just 60 days , depending on the miscellanea .

A close up of bright yellow and orange flowers growing in the garden on a bright sunny day.

Compare your number of frost - spare days with the number of days the plant needs to reach maturity .

If your marigold takes 100 day or more to bloom , and your growing time of year has 190 solar day full , that means you ’ll potentially get to savour the efflorescence for about three calendar month . Seems like a good deal to me !

However , if your produce season only has an norm of 104 days ( my farm season is close to this number ) , you might not get to love the bloomsat allif you inseminate seeds outdoors .

A close up of a small marigold seedling with a flower bud, growing in a terra cotta pot, pictured on a soft focus background.

The most you may get are some buds .

So if you have a short growing time of year , start the slower mature varieties indoors , and for direct sowing , look at a faster maturing variety .

see to sow seed indoors versus outside in this scout .

A close up of an orange marigold covered with a light dusting of frost, pictured on a green soft focus background.

When to Sow Outdoors

marigold are tender annuals , which means they are not at all inhuman sturdy and will be damage or killed by frost .

That ’s why these plant sense like summertime – and not spring .

While mature marigolds may be able to tolerate just a tiny amount of freeze , young seedling are generally more sensitive and it ’s better not to take a chance exposure to the frigidness .

A top down close up picture showing long, thin marigold seeds placed on the surface of the soil.

If you decide to sow in directly into your garden stain , plan on doing this about a week or twoafteryour last middling frost escort .

That way , once your marigolds germinate , the risk of exposure of late frosts will in all probability already have go .

How to Sow Outdoors

When you ’re ready to sow , first choose afull sun locationin your garden .

These annual flowerscantolerate some tincture , specially if your summers are really hot . However , flower will develop more dramatic colors if they are plant in full sun .

When considering where to plant your marigolds , be aware that these plants need to turn in soil that drains well .

A garden border filled with bright red and orange marigolds, with a stone wall in the background, pictured in bright sunshine.

If you ’re deal with laboured remains , mixture in somecompostto assist with drain . Alternatively , inseminate your seeds inraised bed .

Before sowing , wet the territory lightly witha blue-blooded atomizer from the hosiery . I care to do this several hour before I sow in my seed , so the soil is moist but not soggy at planting meter .

Scrape back a little bite of ground to use for brood the seeds . Level out the dirt and chuck it gently to tauten it up .

A raised garden bed, with rows of edible crops interplanted with bright orange marigolds.

Pour some seeds into the palm of your ironic deal so that you do n’t accidentally terminate up dump the entire contents of your bundle onto the soil all in one spot . These seeds are light and visionary , and that can be easy to do !

Place chemical group of 3 or 4 seeds on the disposed soil , space 6 - 12 in asunder , look on the fledged spread of your chosen variety .

You ’ll require to go forth more elbow room between each works if you are turn larger varieties . In world-wide , you could constitute smaller cultivar 6 - 8 column inch apart , and larger one 10 - 12 inches apart .

A close up of a hand holding long, thin seeds, with soil in soft focus in the background

jam seed softly into the soil , then cover softly with the filth you pushed to the side , so that they are buried 1/2 inch deep .

rap and smooth the territory gently , and piddle gently with a watering can , or using the soft rain shower setting on your watering wand .

Make trusted to water every day until seedling emerge . bit by bit sharpen off tearing so that prove plant receive about1 inch a hebdomad .

A self-watering seed starting tray with small seedlings set on a wooden surface, with a hand cultivator and garden trowel in the foreground.

Why Start Indoors

Do you consider sowing seed directly in the garden might not be the best pick for you ?

Here are some reasons why you might desire to start your marigold indoors instead :

When to Start Indoors

If you decide to start your seeds indoors , design to seed them 6 - 8 weeks before your average last frost date .

Allowing your marigold 6 - 8 weeks of growth before setting them out will give them a startle starting line , and you ’ll revel the bloom earlier than if you were to sow in them directly in the garden .

They will be ready to transfer into your garden at the get-go of your local warm time of year , and the earlier maturing variety will bloom soon after transplanting them .

A close up of bright yellow marigolds growing in the garden, pictured in bright sunshine on a soft focus background.

How to Start Indoors

set out marigold seed indoors is pretty well-to-do , but it does requirea few materials and supplies .

If you ’ve never come out your own annuals from seed , you might want to review our sodding guide tostarting annual from seminal fluid indoors .

Here are a few tips for you to get started :

A close up of a black plastic seed starting tray with seedlings leaning towards the light.

About a week before you wish to transpose your seedlings , start indurate them off outdoors to acclimate them to their new turn conditions .

First , place them out of doors in a shaded location where they are protected from wind .

Over the course of a week , step by step increase their exposure to lineal sun and wind by about an 60 minutes a day , until they outside for the intact mean solar day , invest in the location where you intend to plant .

A close up of a large black plastic seed tray with new starts ready for transplanting. To the left of the frame is an orange spray bottle.

engraft your transplantation in a full sun location with well - draining grunge , and irrigate them in .

I care to do my transplantation on a cloudy day or in the eve , so the transplant do n’t have so much rut stress to allot with while they acclimate themselves . This also helps toprotect me from the suntoo !

piddle daily for the first calendar week . Once flora are constitute , give them a estimable soak about once a workweek . H2O only at the ground level , and avoid spraying the blossom directly with pee to keep your blooms looking fresh instead of soggy and wilted .

A close up of two hands from the right of the frame placing a seedling into soil in a raised garden bed.

Need a petty more guidance on how to worry for these yearbook ? Make certain you check out ourcomplete guide to growing marigold .

I honestly have n’t met a marigold I did n’t like , but there are some cultivars I ’m especially excited about , and I ’d like to partake these with you .

All of these recommendations are the faster - ripen Gallic type marigolds , T. patula .

You ’ll bask gorgeous blooms betimes in the season , whether you sow indoors in flats or outdoors in the garden .

A close up of the ‘Queen Sophia’ marigold cultivar. Bright yellow, red, and orange blooms with foliage in the background, growing in the summer garden.

Queen Sophia

‘ Queen Sophia ’ is an All - America Selections Winner whose fiery petals are warm and entrancing .

The petal of this French type are dark orange with yellow edges , and its double bloom measure 2 to 3 column inch across .

‘ Queen Sophia ’

A close up of the delicate double blooms of ‘Strawberry Blonde’ marigolds, growing in the garden, with foliage in soft focus in the background.

Plants acquire 10 - 12 inches tall with a spreading of about 8 inches .

‘ Queen Sophia ’ will reach matureness in 60 Clarence Shepard Day Jr. .

You ’ll find ‘ Queen Sophia ’ seeds in a selection of bundle sizesat Eden Brothers .

Strawberry Blonde

marigold are typically restrict to shades of yellow , red , and orange – so spotting a unique , pink - colored cultivar such as ‘ Strawberry Blonde ’ is quite a shiver .

The efflorescence of this variety take up out crimson , and then transubstantiate into a adorable pinkish - icteric hue .

‘ Strawberry Blonde ’

Plants reach 8 - 10 inches tall and have a 6 to 8 - inch spread at maturity .

‘ Strawberry Blonde ’ will reach out maturity in 55 - 70 daytime .

You ’ll find ‘ Strawberry Blonde ’ in packs of 50 semen for purchaseexclusively at Burpee .

Durango

When you just ca n’t decide which eccentric of marigold to grow , why not go for a mix ?

The ‘ Durango ’ mixing comes in a beautiful mélange of solid sensationalistic , orange , and burgundy hues as well as some enticing bicolor patterns , with twofold blooms gain 2 to 2 1/2 inches across .

‘ Victoria de Durango ’ Mix

industrial plant hit 10 - 12 inches in height and have a 9 - inch spread .

bloom in the ‘ Durango ’ commixture come to maturity in 50 - 60 days .

You ’ll find the ‘ Durango ’ mix , and an mixture of other ‘ Durango ’ colours , in plurality of 1000 seedsat True Leaf marketplace .

require More Choices ?

These lovely flush issue forth in a vast range of crimson , yellow , and orange color pallets , shape , and heights . Find the pure variety for your home and garden with our guide , “ 31 of the Best Types of Marigolds . ”

If you want toharvest and store your own seedsfor use the following yr , you ’ll need to take old - fashioned heirloom cultivars rather than newer intercrossed types .

Turn Seed into ‘Golds

Considering all the factors – the distance of your growing season , your take varieties , and how chop-chop you want to bask the blooms – you should have a pretty unspoiled idea by now of the best direction to turn seed into ‘ golds .

And tolearn more about spring up marigoldsin your garden , why not ensure out the following guides next :

Photos by Kristina Hicks - Hamblin © Ask the Experts , LLC . ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.See our TOSfor more detail . Originally published June 5th , 2020 . Last update May 12th , 2023 . mathematical product pic via Burpee , Eden Brothers , and True Leaf Market . Uncredited photos : Shutterstock .

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Kristina Hicks - Hamblin