Latin: Calendula officinalis

Also Known As: Marybud, Marigold, Gold-bloom, Summer’s Bride, Husbandman’s Dial, Holigold, Bride of the Sun, Spousa Solis, Golds, Gold, Golds, The Sun’s Gold, Ball’s Eyes, Bees-love, Oculis Christi, Drunkard, Marygold, Mary Gowles, Ruddles, Ruddes, Solis Sponsa, Solsequia

Family:Asteraceae

Habitat and Description: This is an annual commonly grown in the garden from seed, with juicy, mid to light green oval shaped leaves and large, many petalled flower heads that range from rich orange to yellow gold depending on the type of Calendula cultivated. It likes plenty of sun, appropriately enough, and prefers a reasonably well drained soil. Calendula has been a popular garden flower for many years, and well deserved as well – it is beautiful and useful in equal measure, and has been known to flower for much of the year. The seeds are quite distinctive – curved, pale brown and rough textured, and keep quite well for quite a large amount of time if kept dry.

Parts Used: The flowers and leaves

Constituents: Triterpenes; pentacyclic alcohols; flavonoids including rutin; resins; saponins; sesquiterpene glycosides; volatile oils and polysaccharides; bitters, phytosterols, mucilage, carotenoids such as carotene and calendulin

Planetary Influence: The sun

Associated Deities and Heroes: Sun Gods, and probably Goddesses as well – so Zeus, Apollo and the rest of the gang from various different cultures, as well as Amaterasu and suchlike. It is also sacred to the Aztec Goddess Xochiquetzal.

Festival: Midsummer, Samhain

Constitution: warm and neutral

Actions and Indications: Calendula is perhaps one of the most versatile herbs in the herbalist’s arsenal. Externally it makes a fantastic wound and skin condition herb, stopping bleeding, and acting as an antiseptic when applied as a tincture or cream to wounds. It is particularly good on infected wounds, cleansing the injury and slowly removing the pus – I’d recommend the patient take it internally as well as applying it to the wound in this sort of scenario. When used externally in this way it also lessens scar formation. It is also useful on insect bites and sun burn as well as on scratches that are likely to be dirty, such as those caused by cats or brambles and assorted thorny shrubs and plants. Lastly, Calendula is good for rashes, especially those caused by warm, damp weather, and can be useful in the treatment of thrush. Basically, if you’ve got anything wrong with the skin – wounds, cuts, sores, rashes and suchlike – Calendula is your herb. There are generally two forms of the tincture available – Calendula in 90% alcohol, and Calendula in 25% alcohol. The 90% tincture is generally used topically, and the 25% internally. Use a heavily diluted tincture and water mix to treat bleeding gums and gum disease.

Internally, the plant works well with the lymph glands, and can resolve lingering infections, soothe swollen glands and cleanse the lymph system as a whole, making it a valuable herb for those suffering from eruptive skin conditions.

It also acts on the digestive system, and is particularly useful in the treatment of illnesses caused by damaged or impaired liver function as it lowers high enzyme counts caused by this, making it useful in the treatment of jaundice, hepatitis and cirrhosis, as well as being soothing to mucous membranes around the whole body, including the digestive system. It is warming and soothing to the stomach, and can be used to treat gastric ulceration, though I would recommend caution in this case as I’ve noticed that ulceration of the digestive system often seems to be an overheated condition which may be exacerbated by using too much Calendula. The plant can also be used to relieve jaundice and gallbladder inflammation.

Calendula also acts as an emmenagogue, promoting the menses, as well as easing excessive period pain and normalising the cycle. The plant can be used to heal perineal tears from labour, as well as cervical damage caused by abortion or miscarriage. It is extremely useful for those who struggle with PMS, as it eases the symptoms that cause such irritability such as bloating, water retention and skin problems. It also makes a worthy ally in the treatment of pelvic congestion and any illnesses caused by this. During labour, Calendula can be used to gently promote contractions and encourage delivery of the placenta.

It is also used as an all round immune tonic, and can be used to ease fevers and measles, as well as making a fantastic eye bath for conjunctivitis – if you use it for those, make sure you strain the tea through a coffee filter paper to remove any trace of dust or plant fragments.

Spiritual and Energetic Uses: Calendula is used to bring comfort to those who are nervous and prone to fear, as well as those who have gone through a profound shock or trauma to the system. It is used to temper anger and rash behaviour. Calendula can also be used to encourage emotional warmth and tolerance, compassion and the ability to truly listen to what others are saying – quite vital to those of us in the healing arts as what our patients don’t say is often just as important as what they do say.

Magical Uses:Being a herb of the sun, Calendula can be used to remove negative energy. An oil can be used to consecrate tools, and the petals can be used as part of an incense for divination, or sprinkled on the floor under the bed to bring prophetic dreams.

The plant has a long association with Samhain, and the Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations, and can be used at remembrance ceremonies as well as funerals and rites for the deceased, as well as for magic to remember deceased loved ones, in particular partners.

Apparently walking barefoot through marigold flowers grants an understanding of the knowledge of birds to girls. The plant can be used in any ritual to honour the sun, as part of a sacred bath, incense or strewing herb, as well as to produce a yellow dye for and altar cloths for use in sun honouring rituals.

Folklore: Old lore tells of the plant’s use to grant a vision of anyone who has stolen anything from the bearer, as well as to engender a good reputation for himself.

An old love spell dictates that a woman should collect soil that her prospective partner has stepped on and pot it up with a calendula plant. The health of the plant indicated the health of the relationship. (The fact that the plant is an annual makes this somewhat suspect, if you ask me!)

The name of the plant derives from the Latin word ‘calends’ or kalendae’, the root word of ‘calender’, and originally meaning the first day of every month. The plant was widely used throughout the ancient world, in Egypt, Persia and Greece, as well as India, in a wide range of uses ranging from medicine, to cookery, to devotional uses as altar decorations.

In Mexican lore, the plants grew where the blood of the native Mexicans fell, when they were slaughtered by the invading Spanish conquistadors. The plant was sacred to the Goddess Xochiquetzal, Goddess of love, marriage and prostitutes, as well as the patron of spinning, weaving, music, painting and carving, magic, art and dance. She was also the Goddess of the land of the dead, which is perhaps one of the reasons why Calendulas are offered on the Day of the Dead.

Dose: A tea of 2tsp of dried herb to a cup of hot water, three times a day or more often if you are using it as a bath or wash. Of the tincture, up to 10mls a day of 1:5 25% strength tincture, depending on what you are trying to treat. If used as part of a prescription, I wouldn’t use more than about 30mls per week in a formula.

Contraindications: None known at present, except perhaps that it bears mentioning that the plant is a member of the daisy family and as such could possibly cause skin irritation to anyone with an allergy to members of the daisy family. Opinion over its safety during pregnancy seems to be divided, however given that it can be used to promote contractions during labour, I’d probably recommend that you give it a miss and go for something else instead.

Brought to you by Alex English at http://www.eldrumherbs.co.uk