Flower · Asteraceae
When to sow marigolds
Fast, cheerful and commonly planted alongside vegetables as a companion.
Start seed indoors
6 weeks before
Counted from your last spring frost.
Plant out
1 week after
Counted from your last spring frost.
Sow direct
1 week after
Counted from your last spring frost.
Those weeks become real dates once you name a place.
Timing, in frost-relative terms
Seed packets rarely give calendar dates, because a date that suits one latitude is wrong at another. They give offsets from the last spring frost instead, and those offsets are what make marigolds plantable anywhere.
- Start seed indoors 6 weeks before the last frost.
- Plant out 1 week after the last frost.
- Sow direct 1 week after the last frost.
- Expect 50–70 days to maturity, counted from sowing.
Getting the timing right
Six weeks indoors produces flowering plants at transplant time. Direct sowing works but flowers three weeks later.
Frost tolerance
Killed by frost at both ends of the season, with no tolerance at any growth stage.
Classified as tender, with damage expected below 0°C (32°F)32°F (0°C).