Marigolds (tagetes) are unpretentious, abundantly and long-flowering plants with bright flowers of various colors. Tagetes looks great on flower beds, ridges, balconies, and tall varieties in the form of bouquets will not lose their freshness for ten to twelve days. Marigolds are grown more often in seedlings; sowing seeds in open ground is also possible. Depending on the planting method, the sowing time of the seeds is different.
Marigolds will delight with blossoming buds already in June, if you plant them on seedlings in mid-spring. From the moment of sowing to the receipt of flowering plants, it takes about 70-80 days, so the first half of April will be the best time for planting. Submerge the seeds to a depth of about a centimeter, then lightly sprinkle with earth in a special box or pots with a nutritious substrate. The room temperature should be above twenty degrees.
Seedlings are picked in the phase of one or two leaves. It is recommended to keep the seedlings in a warm and bright part of the room, providing daily watering. After the threat of frost has passed, in late May - early June, young plants can be planted in open ground. Tagetes is photophilous, therefore, for planting seedlings, it is advisable to choose a well-lit area with fertile soil, but they will take root in light partial shade.
Sowing seeds in open ground will give a later flowering, around the third decade of July. With this option, you must wait for the soil to warm up enough. In the sunniest area, you need to make deep and wide holes in which you need to place the seeds at a depth of one centimeter. After the formation of two pairs of real leaves, marigolds need to be transplanted to a permanent place.
The distance between plants when planting will depend on the variety - from 20 to 40 cm. The interval between low-growing species will be small, and tall varieties will be separated from each other by almost half a meter. It is not difficult to take care of flowers: water regularly, loosen the soil, weed weeds, fertilize with complex mineral fertilizers, remove faded buds. In gratitude, a terry miracle will caress your eyes not only in summer, but also in autumn.
