Marigold ~ Spirits far more generous than ours                              
Botanical Name: Calendula Family: Compositae

”Open afresh your round of starry folds ye ardent marigolds.”  
John Keats 1795-1821

The marigold has been associated with the sun’s journey across the sky, from nine o’clock in the morning until three o’clock in the afternoon. The Victorian’s believed they could set their clocks by the hour that this vibrant flower opened and closed its colorful petals.

Marigold flowers year-round and the name marigold is said to mean Mary’s gold after the Virgin Mary. The marigold has been said to signify grief; because the flower mourns the departure of the sun when its petals are forced to close.

Marigolds add a blaze of brightness to our gardens and to our lives as they search for the fiery brilliance of the sun.