Calendula: From Cottage Garden to Research Lab
With its cheerful orange and yellow petals, calendula is a favourite in Australian cottage gardens. It’s also been used in kitchens and folk traditions for centuries. Today it appears in many skin creams and herbal blends. This guide looks at where calendula comes from, how it’s been used, and what researchers have actually studied.
What is calendula?
Calendula is Calendula officinalis, commonly called the pot marigold or English marigold. It’s in the daisy family (Asteraceae). Despite the name, it isn’t closely related to the French and African marigolds (Tagetes) found in many gardens, which have a stronger smell and a different chemistry.
The name “calendula” comes from the Latin calendae, the first day of the month, perhaps because the plant can flower almost all year round. It’s believed to have come from southern Europe and the Mediterranean and has been grown across Europe since at least medieval times.
A plant with a long history
Calendula has had many uses over the centuries:
- In the kitchen: its petals were known as “poor man’s saffron”, used to colour butter, cheese, soups and rice. The “pot” in pot marigold refers to the cooking pot.
- In folk practice: petals were infused into oils and ointments and applied to the skin.
- In the garden: it’s a hardy annual that grows easily from seed, and it’s popular with bees. In much of Australia it’s planted in autumn and flowers through winter and spring.
The petals are edible, so you’ll sometimes see them scattered over salads and cakes.
What’s in it?
Calendula flowers contain triterpenoids (including faradiol esters), flavonoids, and carotenoids, the pigments behind their bright orange colour. They also contain small amounts of essential oils and other compounds. Much of the research focuses on the triterpenoids and flavonoids.
What has research looked at?
It’s important to be clear: almost all of the human research on calendula has looked at creams, ointments and topical extracts applied to the skin, especially on wounds. It hasn’t looked at drinking calendula tea.
A 2008 systematic review in Wounds gathered the research on calendula and wound healing (Leach, 2008). It found that the available evidence was insufficient to support or refute calendula’s use for wound healing, mostly because there were few high-quality human trials.
A later review, published in Wound Repair and Regeneration in 2019, revisited the question (Givol et al., 2019). It found some encouraging signs in a small number of studies, particularly for one type of chronic wound. But the authors concluded that the evidence was still limited and that more well-designed trials were needed.
In other words, calendula on the skin remains an area of research, not a proven treatment. Wounds that are deep, infected or slow to heal need to be assessed by a GP or nurse.
Calendula as a tea
Many people enjoy calendula petals in herbal tea blends for their colour and gentle flavour:
- Use about 1–2 teaspoons of dried petals per cup.
- Steep in just-boiled water for 5–10 minutes, then strain.
- The infusion is a golden yellow with a mild, slightly sweet, faintly bitter and peppery taste. It pairs well with chamomile-style floral blends, lemon or green tea.
Calendula petals also add a bright touch to loose-leaf blends, where they’re often used as much for looks as for taste.
Growing your own
If you’d like to grow calendula:
- Sow seeds in autumn in most of Australia, or in early spring in cooler areas.
- Choose a sunny spot with well-drained soil.
- Pick flowers often to encourage more blooms.
- Dry petals on a screen or paper in a warm, shaded place, then store them in an airtight jar.
Who should take care?
As a member of the daisy family, calendula may cause allergic reactions in people sensitive to plants such as ragweed, chrysanthemums, daisies or echinacea. Calendula taken by mouth isn’t recommended during pregnancy, as there isn’t enough safety information. It may add to the effects of sedative medicines. If you take regular medication or have allergies, check with your pharmacist.
The bottom line
Calendula is a bright, easy-to-grow flower with a long history in gardens, kitchens and folk traditions. Modern research has mostly looked at skin creams and wound healing, and reviews say the evidence is still limited. Enjoy calendula for its colour, its story and its gentle flavour, and get proper advice for any skin wound that worries you.
This article is general information only and is not medical advice. It is not about any specific product. Talk to your GP or pharmacist about your own health.
References
- Givol O, et al. A systematic review of Calendula officinalis extract for wound healing. Wound Repair Regen. 2019. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31145533/
- Leach MJ. Calendula officinalis and wound healing: a systematic review. Wounds. 2008. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25941793/
