Marsh Marigold - Elegant Primrose

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Marsh marigold grows in stagnant or slowly flowing water near springs, in swamps, in lakes, along streams and rivulets, along damp grooves, as well as in swampy areas of meadows and forests. This plant, rightfully considered decorative, is very loved by gardeners due to its early timing and rather long period of flowering

Getting to know the plant

Marsh marigold is a herbaceous perennial plant, which is a representative of the Buttercup family.

The height of the marsh marigold can range from three to forty centimeters. The stems of this plant are either ascending and ascending, or erect and fleshy. Even recumbent stems are occasionally found. Cord-like roots are collected in bunches.

The leaves of the marsh beauty are dark green, cordate or reniform, alternate, leathery, with crenate-toothed or crenate edges. Stem leaves, located on short petioles, slightly smaller located on fleshy long petioles of basal leaves, sometimes reaching twenty centimeters in diameter.

In the axils of the upper leaves on long peduncles there are beautiful yellow flowers of marsh marigold. The diameter of the flowers is approximately 4.5 cm. There are also garden forms of marsh marigold - they are characterized by white and pale yellow double flowers.

The fruits of the marsh marigold are amusing multileafs. As a rule, the number of leaflets is equal to the number of pistils in the flowers. Each leaflet has a small nose at the tip and contains shiny black seeds - there are usually ten of them. In May-June, ripening seeds begin to fall out of the leaflets.

The habitat of this beautiful plant is almost the entire temperate climate zone. Everywhere you can find marsh marigold in Russia.

Properties of marsh marigold

Fresh flowering marigold marsh is the basis of homeopathic remedies for coughs, and warts are reduced by the juice of its leaves.

In no case should the green parts of this plant be eaten raw, as they are very poisonous. The unopened flower buds are first scalded with boiling water or boiled in water, and then, with the addition of various spices (pepper, bay leaf, cloves, etc.), are marinated in vinegar. Such a peculiar dish serves as an excellent substitute for capers when preparing hodgepodge, borscht and salads. You should not be afraid to use the plant in this form - poisonous substances are completely destroyed during cooking.

Boiled marigold rhizomes are also edible. Moreover, they are an excellent seasoning for fish and meat dishes. Thoroughly ground dried roots are added to flour when baking bread. And in the Caucasus, in winter, dried flower buds and tops of stems are widely used as a seasoning for first courses.

How to grow

It is preferable to grow marsh marigold in open and highly humid areas (then it will bloom more abundantly), although in the presence of frequent abundant watering, it can grow quite well in dry areas. The best planting depth is 5 - 10 cm. Partial shade and shade are also acceptable for planting this plant, but only on condition that it is created by deciduous trees and the area with plants is illuminated by the sun during flowering.

The marsh marigold reproduces both vegetatively and by seeds. Most often it is propagated by dividing the bushes. Ideally, it is held in September or early spring. If division is carried out at the height of the growing season, then the plant begins to wilt and shed its leaves. Larger cuttings bloom faster and more abundantly, but sometimes you need to wait for the flowering of small cuttings - they often bloom only in the second year.

For sowing, fresh seeds that ripen in June are collected, and by the end of summer the plant will begin to germinate slowly. Having sown seeds before winter, you can expect shoots only in spring. If the seeds are planned to be sown in spring, step-by-step stratification will not be superfluous for them: first for about a month at a temperature of 10 degrees, and then for two months at a temperature of 18 - 20 degrees.

In care, the marsh marigold is unpretentious, it is also not susceptible to diseases and pests.

They go well with marsh marigold hosta, brunner, thick-leaved badan, Chinese astilba, Alpine forget-me-not, snake mountaineer, ostrich, krasodnev and softest lungwort.