Caledula

NAME : Calendula

LATIN NAME : Calendula officinalis (LINN.)

FAMILY: N.O. Compositae
COMMON / FOLK NAMES :
Bride of the Sun, Bull Flower, Butterwort, Calendula, Cowbloom, Death-flower, Drunkard Gold, Fior d’ogni (Italian),  Garden Marigold,  Gold Bloom,Golden Flower of Mary, Holigold, Husband’s Dial, Kingscup, Marigold, Marsh Marigold, Maravilla, Mary Bud, Mary Golde, Mary Gowles, Mejorana (Spanish), Poet’s Marigold, Pot Marigold, Publican and Sinner, Ringelblume (German), Solis Sponsa, Solsequia, Summer’s Bride, Sun’s Bride, Water Dragon,  Yolk of Egg
Note:  Calendula is not the same as the common garden or French marigold
(Tagetes ), African marigold ( T. erecta ), or Inca marigold ( T. minuta ).
HABITAT: Calendula is thought to be native to Egypt, hieroglyphics from buildings constructed around 5,000 years ago describe calendula flowers.
FLOWER SPECIFICATIONS
Season: Annual
Zones: United States 4 - 10
Height: 24 inches
Bloom Season: Late Spring to Early Fall
Foliage Color: Light Green
Bloom Color: Orange, Brown Center
Environment: Full Sun to Part Shade
Soil: Light, Well-drained Soil
Planting Directions
Temperature: 70F
Average Germ Time: 1-2 weeks
Light Required: No
Depth: 1/16th
Sowing Rate: 6-8 seeds per plant
Moisture: keep moist (not wet) with weeper ground watering hose or bottom water
Plant Spacing: 8-12"
Notes: Needs good drainage
DESCRIPTION:  A Druid sacred herb, this cheerful annual or perennial has hairy leaves and golden-orange daisy flowers. It grows in a small clump with fragrant lance-shaped leaves; it produces flowers that resemble large yellow and orange Daisy.
The leaves are added to salads and garnishes of flowers color rice and fish dishes. Calendula is antiseptic and antifungal and contains hormone and vitamin A precursors. Essential oil is extracted from the petals but is extremely expensive. 
FLOWERING PERIOD: The plants will begin to flower in June, and continue flowering until the frost kills them. They will increase from year to year, if allowed to seed themselves. The seeds ripen in August and September, and if permitted to scatter will furnish a supply of young plants in the spring.
CULTIVATION:
For the garden the seed is usually started in a hotbed during March or April and the plants pricked out in flats 2 inches apart and hardened off in the usual way.  Seeds sown in April, in any soil, in sunny, or half-sunny places germinate freely. Often the seed is sown in the open and the seedlings thinned and transplanted when about 2 inches tall.  When the weather becomes settled they are set a foot or 15 inches apart in rather poor soil, preferably light and sandy, with sunny exposure. They require no other cultivation but to keep them clean from weeds and to thin out where too close, leaving them 9 to 10 inches apart, so that their branches may have room to spread.
ASSOCIATIONS:

Element:   Fire

Gender: Masculine

Planet: Sun

Deities:  Sun Gods

Astrological Sign: Leo

MAGICAL USES: Consecration, Divination, Business and Legal Matters, Prophetic Dreams, Protection, Psychic powers,  Seeing Magical Creatures, Love, Renewing Personal Energy
Place the flower beneath the head at night to induce clairvoyant dreams. Sometimes added to love sachets. 
RITUAL USES  Marigolds are used to make protective wreaths or magical hoops. Plant marigold to bring joy to the dead (including your dead relatives, family, and friends). Use in beverages for fire rituals, solar festials, or summerland (death) rituals. It should be gathered at noon.
COMPANION PLANTING:
Calendula makes a good companion to herb and vegetable gardens because it repels tomato hornwoms and asparagus beetles. It also attracts caterpillars, leafhoppers, aphids, and whiteflies, so you can plant it away from your main garden to trap these pests. The flowers also attract beneficial insects like bees.
PARTS USED: 
Flowers &  leaves
PROPERTIES :
The flowers are a healing agent. Marigold petal ointment can help chapped hands and varicose veins, also works wonders with eczema and inflammation. Added to fomentations, poultices and salves, they speed healing of wounds and of nerve damage.Also use as an antiseptic in first aid. 
Flowers:

COMPRESS -  Externally, buds are made into compresses for the treatment of burns.

INFUSION –For internal use the flowers are prepared by infusion and recommended for the flu, fever, rheumatism, jaundice, and painful menstruation, intestinal problems and to clean lymph and blood.

LOTION – Simmer 12 heads in 2 cups milk, steep, strain and apply topically.

TEA - To ease inflammation, dip a compress into a strong marigold tea combined with an equal part of apple cider vinegar. Sprains can also be helped with marigold petals steeped in vinegar.

TINCTURE – Useful in fevers, the herb can be used fresh, dry, or in tincture.

MEDICINAL USES:
Calendula flowers have many healing properties. They are used as teas for stomach ailments, to relieve hemorrhoids, to soothe infected eyes and for healing skin irritations. Calendula was used in ancient Greece and Rome in cooking and medicine. The name of the flower comes from the Latin word kalendae, from which the word calendar is derived, because it could be found blooming at the beginning the month. Calendula has been shown to have antibacterial, antiviral, astringent and wound healing properties. Use calendula salve on dry lips and skin, blemishes, burns, slight scrapes and cuts. 
Preparation:

TEA:  steep two teaspoons of flowers per cup of water for twenty minutes; take one teaspoon per hour. Calendula tea may be taken 3 times per day.

TINCTURE: which can be taken with water or tea, can be taken 3 times a day (in doses of 1-2 ml). To make calendula tincture, soak a cup of flowers in .5 quarts of rectified alcohol for 5 to 6 weeks. A tincture dose is 5 to 15 drops.Using tincture, take five to twenty drops four times a day.  Fluid extract, 1/4 to 1 drachm

SALVE

Pick 2 cups fresh calendula flower petals at mid-day on a sunny, dry day to avoid dew or moisture, pulling the petals from the flowers and avoiding any green leaves. Use only smooth and silky petals that are not wet with rain or dew. Gather other ingredients and utensils: 1 cup extra virgin olive oil or pure sweet almond oil, 1/4 cup pure bee’s wax, a stainless steel sauce pot to melt bee’s wax, a double burner, a large piece of unbleached cheese cloth and several small sterilized jars with lids.

Cook the fresh petals in oil for an hour, slowly over low heat and stir constantly. Don’t boil or burn, or leave the pot without stirring. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. When cool but still warm, press calendula oil from the petals by straining the oil and petals through cheese cloth and squeezing all the oil from the cooked petals into a clean bowl. Put the freshly squeezed calendula oil into a new sauce pot and warm over low heat again while melting the beeswax in the double burner at the same time. When the beeswax is melted, pour it into the warmed calendula oil and mix well over low heat. Pour the warm mixture into sterilized jars, adding a few fresh petals for color if desired and a few drops of vanilla essential oil or other essential oils for fragrance; let set for 15 minutes before putting on lids and sealing. Label the calendula salve and store in a cool, dark place, putting the batch date on the bottom of the jars.

CULINARY USES: The flower heads are sometimes dried and used in broths, soups, stews, etc., but the flavor is too pronounced for American palates. 
COSMETIC USES: Calendula petals can be used to make a nourishing skin cream or cleanser, and a strong infusion made from marigold petals can be used to lighten hair. Flowers are used for hair rinse. Combine with chamomile and comfrey for an all-purpose soothing mix for all skin types. Good in bath or facial mixtures. Used in the bath is considered stimulating. Cosmetic Flower Add petals to creams and baths for cleansing, healing and softening the skin. Aromatic Pungent to sweet aroma, deters flies. Calendula used both internally and externally has been found to be one of the single most useful herbs in skin care. Used in a massage oil it is said to help get rid of cellulite. 
CRAFT USES:  Decorative