Pennsylvania Dutch Calendula

The original seed source for this variety was Roughwood Center for Heritage Seedways, and it was brought to the farm as part of an Ancestry Garden project to celebrate a grandfather's heritage.  This variety proved to be hardy and a prolific bloomer in 2025. If you buy calendula products from the farm store, it is likely made from this variety or the farm mix.

Calendula's herbal superpower comes from the sticky resin in the base of the flower, and this variety is super resin-y.  If you are an herbalist or just exploring the use of calendula flowers, this will be a great variety to work with.

Roughwood has this to say about calendula - "Called Ringelblum or Ringelros (wreath rose) in Pennsylvania Dutch, their presence in old-time gardens was both culinary and medical, not to mention imbued with all sorts of rich folklore. In the world of Pennsylvania Dutch fairy tales, Ringelros is a flower fairy, the daughter of the fairy queen called Schlangefraa (the Snake Mother), a symbol of beauty and longevity. Ringelros protects the garden from danger and misfortune, which is why calendulas were often planted along pathways leading into houses or into kitchen gardens. This belief traces to the Middle Ages when the calendula was thought to protect the house from disease and pestilence. As such, the flowers were gathered into wreaths and placed on graves or hung on front doors if there was a contagious disease in the community. The petals are still scattered in soups, and the flowers are eaten in salads with salt and vinegar to strengthen digestion. The flowers were also made into tarts or converted into salves for ailments of the skin."