Calendula, or Pot marigold, an easy bright addition to any garden.
Calendula is most definitely one of my favourite flowers. It is bright, super easy to grow and has so many wonderful benefits.
It is a perennial, which means it will come back year after year. You can use the flowers, but remember to let some go to seed, leave them to self seed the following year or collect to sow yourself.
Calendula officinalis:
Scatter the seeds in spring, anywhere you want to add a bit of colour to your garden, sow in pots or surround your vegetables for a bit of companion planting.
The bees and butterflies love them and so do other insects, create a wildlife haven in your back garden!
The benefits:
Not only does calendula benefit the wildlife in your garden, it also has benefits to you too.
Use the fresh young leaves in salads as well as the mature petals
Other garden flowers can be added to salads such as nasturtiums (flowers and leaves), borage, heartsease (viola) as well as flowering herbs such as thyme, mint, basil etc.
Pick and dry the whole flowers:
Pick the flowers on a dry sunny day, when the whole flower is open and dry. The beauty of picking the flower head is that the plant will continue to produce many more flowers.
Lay the picked flowers on some baking parchment, start off in the sun if possible and store in an airtight jar when the flower is completely dry (this may take a few weeks). Continue this throughout the summer until you have filled a large jar.
Remember.... don't pick all of the flowers, as the summer comes to an end, let some of the flowers go to seed.
Once the summer has ended and you have a lovely full jar of dried flowers there are a few things you can do with it:
Calendula tea:
Use the dried flowers as a tea, this has many reported benefits:
1. Drinking calendula tea can help in the treatment of urinary tract infections.
2. The healing and anti-inflammatory properties of calendula make it very soothing on the throat. Use it as a gargle when your throat feels sore.
3. Rinsing with a calendula tea can also help with other inflammations of mouth, such as canker sores, ulcers or thrush. It can be very healing after dental work.
4. Calendula can help with digestion when taken internally by healing ulcers, calming the GI tract, and stimulating the production of bile.
5. Use calendula tea in a sitz bath to help soothe haemorrhoids, yeast infections, and other swelling.
6. Pour calendula tea into a spray bottle or use cotton balls to calm skin irritations such as nappy rash, insect bites or stings.
7. Using clean cloths or cotton pads to apply a calendula tea compress to deeper wounds, injuries, and burns to prevent infections, promote healing and reduce scarring. (Always do a test patch before using, to check for any possible allergic reactions)
8. Calendula has anti-septic properties that can help skin conditions such as acne. Wash your face with calendula tea if you are prone to breakouts.
9. Many women find that drinking calendula tea regularly helps to regulate menstruation. It can also help with painful menstruation.
10. Add calendula tea to your homemade baby wipes solution to help alleviate and prevent nappy rash.
11. Use calendula tea as an eye rinse for itchy eyes due to allergies, dryness and viral pink-eye.
12. Soak your feet in calendula tea to help treat fungal conditions such as athlete’s foot.
13. Rinse your hair with calendula tea after washing to soothe itchy scalp conditions.
14. Calendula tea can help reduce fevers by causing a sweat- only 2-3 cups per day maximum.
15. Use cooled calendula tea as an astringent skin toner that is hydrating and healing.
Calendula oil:
Poor a cold-pressed, organic oil over your dried flowers. I like to use extra-virgin olive or avocado oil. Make sure the oil completely covers all the dried flowers and let this soak for at least 4 weeks.
You can then use this oil directly onto your skin or add to salad dressings.
It is packed full of anti-oxidants and is very anti-inflammatory.
It also has antibacterial and antiviral properties.
Use the oil to make a salve:
Once your oil has soaked you can make yourself a salve. Add in any extra essential oils you would like, to enhance the properties of the salve (such as lavender or tea tree or oregano, check properties and suggested amounts before using).
Use your salve for things like:
1. Treating ring worm. Calendula salve works as an anti-fungal.
2. Sunburnt skin to help soothe and prevent peeling.
3. Helping to reduce the appearance of existing scars or stretch marks– and prevent new scars from forming when used on healing skin.
4. Calming red, hot eczema patches on your skin
5. Treating varicose veins. Because of its anti-inflammatory properties and its ability to improve circulation and strengthen capillary and vein walls.
6. An eye make-up remover that soothes the sensitive skin
7. Calendula oil can also be used to treat ear aches. Drop a few drops and massage onto the ear.
8. For chapped hands and faces and can be especially soothing in the colder months.
Healing Salve Recipe:
1 cup herb infused oil (you may want to mix in other infused oils you have made such as comfrey or plantain)
1/8-1/4 cup natural beeswax (I use pastilles as they melt quicker)
Around 25 drops of an essential oil, or a mixture of a few (optional)
1/2 tsp of vitamin E oil (optional)
Make the Herbal Healing Salve
Bring a pan of water, in which you have placed an upturned plate in the bottom, to the boil (this is mimicking a Bain Marie or double boiler)
Put the beeswax into a large glass jar sitting in the boiling water (make sure there is enough water to come up the side of the jar but doesn't go inside). Melt the beeswax.
When the beeswax is melted, pour in the herb-infused oil. Stir with the spatula until the oil is just melted.
Stir in the essential oil (optional) and the vitamin E (optional) pour into small glass jars and allow to cool. It will take around four hours to come to room temperature. During this time, don't cover the containers as it can cause condensation on the inner part of the lid. Put lids on after the balms are completely cooled.
You can use the salve immediately (they make excellent presents!)
Use it on cuts, scrapes, rashes, splinters, eczema, thrush etc.
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