How I Save Marigold Seeds and What I Learned Over a Season Starting My Marigolds Each Year

 How I Save Marigold Seeds and What I Learned Over a Season Starting My Marigolds Each Year

I’ve been growing marigolds for a few seasons now and have learned a lot by watching how they grow, bloom, and produce seeds. 

What started as a simple way to add color to my yard turned into learning how to care for the plants and try saving my own seeds.

 In this article, I’m sharing my experience and what I learned from my first attempt at saving marigold seeds.

What You will learn in this article 

How i start growing Marigolds each yr 

How i tried saving Marigold Seeds 

Reusing Seeds 

What Went wrong with the seeds

How I Start Growing Marigolds Each Year

I usually start growing marigolds when it gets warm outside in mid spring.

Every year I buy one package of French marigold seeds, which are the smaller type that grow red, orange, and yellow flowers.

 I chose French marigolds because they are easier to maintain, especially in smaller containers. 

I like growing them in pots because it makes it easier to take care of, and can move them around the yard or place them on porch steps for decoration. 

Sometimes I use a larger container just to change the look and grow more plants in one space. 

Over time, I’ve found that keeping things simple and manageable works best for me.

How I Tried Saving Marigold Seeds 

I had been thinking about saving marigold seeds for a couple of years before I finally tried it.

Before I even tried to save any Marigold Seeds, I would just deadhead the flowers and throw them out, let the dried flowers fall off by themselves, or take some seeds out of the flower head and sprinkle some back around the plants. The seeds would end up sprouting and growing new plants.

I wanted to save seeds so I wouldn’t have to keep buying them every year, allowing me to grow more plants the next season and create fuller containers with more flowers.

My idea was to slowly build up my collection throughout the summer.

To keep things simple, I placed a small pot on an outdoor shelf underneath another shelf to collect the seeds over time.

As I deadheaded the flowers a few times each week, I simply tossed the dried heads into the pot.

Over time, the pot slowly filled up with a good amount of seeds saved for the next year.

Reusing Seeds to replant 

Another trick I like to do during the season is replant seeds immediately after deadheading.

After clipping off the dried flowers, I remove the seeds from the seed pods and sprinkle a few right back onto the soil where the other marigolds are already growing.

I lightly cover them with a bit of dirt and gently water them. Over time, these seeds sprout into brand-new plants, producing more plants, flowers and a fresh batch of seeds to save later.

What Went Wrong With My Seeds 

As the season continued, I knew the pot I was using didn’t have a lid. I thought the pot was ok on the shelf display under a shelf.

Even though it sat underneath a shelf, the outdoor elements took over.

It rained several times, and local birds eventually discovered the pot and got into the seeds.

Because the container was left kind of exposed, many of the seeds were damaged. 

When I finally checked on them at first, most were no longer usable, and only a tiny handful remained. 

That was my first real attempt at saving marigold seeds, and while it didn’t turn out the way I expected, it taught me a lot for next year.

What I Learned About Saving Marigold Seeds

The lesson I learned is that even though marigolds are easy to grow, saving their seeds takes more planning than I first thought. 

I now know they must be stored in a sealed container and kept in a dry, cool spot so they don’t get damaged. 

Even though my first attempt didn’t work out, the experience helped me understand exactly what to do differently next time. 

Each year, I keep improving little by little, and I plan to keep trying until I get it completely right.

 

Growing marigolds has been a simple but rewarding experience. 

Watching them grow, bloom, and go through their full life cycle has helped me understand more about how plants work. 

Saving seeds is part of that process, and even mistakes have helped me learn what to do better next time.

Fun fact 

Marigolds are one of the easiest flowers to grow from seed, which is why many beginner gardeners love them.

More gardening articles

Visit the main blog page above for gardening tips on growing Marigolds.

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