Marigolds Useful To Wildlife

SOME of the cultivated plants that are often grown by homeowners can be very useful to wildlife.  French Marigold (Tagetes patula) and African Marigold (Tagetes erecta) are just such plants.

Marigolds have a long blooming season, allowing numerous kinds of butterflies to feed all summer and into the fall.  Monarchs, Eastern Tiger Swallowtails, Spicebush Swallowtails, Great Spangled Fritillaries, and many different sulphurs and skippers come to these plants.  Bees visit and occasionally a Ruby-throated Hummingbird.

(Monarch Butterfly resting on Marigold blossom by Steve Skjold)

Although marigolds are not native to the United States, they did originate in the Americas.  Marigolds grow in Central America, and Spanish explorers found the Aztecs making use of these plants in Mexico in the 1500s.  Seeds were taken back to the Spanish court and marigolds were soon growing in monastery gardens.  Eventually seeds found their way to Africa and France, and then back to colonial gardens by the time of the American Revolution.  Now some species of marigolds are called “French” or “African”, even though they were originally “American”!

The French Marigold ranges from 6 to 14 inches tall and can be solid or bi-colored with orange, yellow, red, or mahogany combinations.  African Marigolds are larger, growing from 9 inches to over 3 ft. tall, and come in shades of orange or yellow.  Seeds can be sown outdoors as soon as the last frost date of spring is past (for earlier blooms, seeds can be started indoors 8 weeks before the last frost date, and then transplanted outside after the danger of frost is past).  Transplants are commonly sold at local garden centers.

Marigolds are started easily from seed, making them good plants for a child’s garden, introducing your little one(s) to gardening and wildlife at the same time.  Since marigolds love dry, sunny areas, they are easy to maintain during times of drought, and because marigold leaves have oil glands that give off an unpleasant scent, most leaf-eating insects and even rabbits will not bother these plants.  Sometimes marigolds reseed themselves the following year, allowing you to have volunteer plants that require no effort on your part.  Marigolds are really delightful plants!

Marlene A. Condon
Author, Nature Friendly Garden
Crozet, VA

Comments

[JanetT]

Wow, I've always looked down on the marigold, but I'll plant some for the wildlife now!