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I love Calendula ‘Deja Vu’ because you never know what you’re going to get when the flowers open. Here are just a few examples:
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Beautiful, Em. Is this an annual? I assume you start these from seed. I hope to start my Coleus and maybe some Kale today. Haven’t accomplished too much so far today, though!!
These are beautiful Calendula. Would be too expensive for me to order seed from Johnny’s Seed, especially since I want so few. I do have some older Bon Bon seeds. Will have to use them. When do you start your Calendula seed?
I have visited your site often, but I had a bad fall on and icy spot four weeks ago and broke my wrist. Luckily my left. I have a few seedlings growing under lights -started them using the baggy method for the most part. Hope you have great success with your Deja Vu.
Hi LT,
Yes, calendulas (pot marigolds) are annuals that I start from seed. I haven’t accomplished much today either. Mostly because the phone keeps ringing with political ads and endorsements. Stop the madness! 🙂
James, I’m so sorry to hear that you broke your wrist. I did a little slipping and sliding on the ice myself this morning, but I avoided a fall. Spring can start acting like spring any day now as far as I’m concerned.
I usually start my calendula seeds 8 weeks before I intend to plant them outside. This year I started them last Tuesday (March 26).
Can’t get any Deja Vu. I did manage to find Pacific Beauty Mix at a local store. Will try these along with Fruit Twist from T&M. James
I may have grown ‘Pacific Beauty’ at one time, but I can’t remember for sure. ‘Fruit Twist’ looks fun! You’ll have to let me know how that one performs for you.
Decided to order Deja Vu from Johnny’s last week. Hopefully I will get the seed in time for planting this year. Couldn’t resist after seeing your pictures! James
Ordinarily I have no difficulty getting any of my seed to germinate, but I’m having trouble with Pacific Beauty Mix and Fruit Twist. A week ago I used the Baggie Method for Tomato (latah), Malva and the Calendula. The first two have germinated and have been put in pots. Two of the Calendula have germinated – one of each! Now I’ve put the Calendula in seed starting mix. Maybe I’ll have better germination. Maybe I’ve been a bit too impatient!
I haven’t received the Deja Vu yet. Hopefully I’ll find the proper sowing method in the next few days. Any suggestions appreciated. James
Calendula seeds need darkness to germinate, so I usually tuck them in about 1/4-inch below the soil surface. I’m having trouble sowing ‘Touch of Red’ this year. I’ve reseeded twice and I still haven’t gotten more than 15-20% germination. I’m starting to think I have a bad batch of seed. All the rest of the calendula cultivars are sprouting just fine.
Every thing went well for the Calendula Pacific Beauty Andy Fruit Twist. Took them out of the damp coffee filter and put them in fairly damp soil. Got at least 95 percent of both to germinate. The Deja Vu arrived May 1. Put 18 seed in the potting soil. Had 100 percent germination. Have 2 in each of a nine pac container. I’m going to leave 9 seedlings in the container and then move them to a larger one. I guess a four pack should be okay. I haven’t grown Calendula for years. Usually I buy the Bob Bon series at the nursery. Do you have any advice re: transplanting into a the four pac?
Sorry I’m being so technical. We have our warmest day today (20 degrees C). But I can’t do much digging yet because of my wrist. Incidentally, some of my Dahlias are showing buds. But they are going to have to wait until at least June 15 before they can be planted. Guess you are very busy in your garden! James
Wow, nice germination rates! I sow all my seeds in plastic 6-packs (so I end up with 72 plants per tray) and all the plants I sprout seem to do okay in those tiny plugs for a few months until I can plant them outside. I think what you are doing sounds like a good plan.
We’ve finally had a few nice spring days so I’m starting to get ready to bring my plants up from the basement and harden them off. However, on Tuesday there was a major snowstorm only a few hundred miles away from here, so I don’t necessarily trust that we’re out of the woods with regard to freezing temperatures. I’m rarin’ to go, but I’m going to be cautious.
Thought I’d tell you that my Calendula did well at our Cottage where they received mostly full sun. Both the Pacific Beauty and the Deja Vu were only about a foot tall, due, I expect, to receiving less fertilizer and water. But they held up well in the wind and looked fantastic. (I collected some of the seed from both types. Should I use these seed or plant what I bought?) The few I planted here didn’t do as well: less sun, more water and fertilizer. How did your Calendula do this year? James
I’m so glad to hear that your calendulas at the cottage were a success. All of the rain in late spring and early summer made my annuals particularly leggy this year, so my calendulas were kind of a twisted mess for awhile. I cut them back and now that the cooler fall temperatures are here they’re really starting to take off again. I think ‘Deja Vu’ is still my favorite, but ‘Lemon Twist’ (which I got from Swallowtail Garden Seeds this year) was very impressive. I would think you could plant your collected seeds from those cultivars. I’ve never tried it, but occasionally I get volunteer seedlings in the garden, and I let those plants grow up and bloom. I haven’t tracked whether they bloom true to color, mostly because ‘Deja Vu’ blooms in so many different colors to begin with that it would be hard to tell!
I placed the seeds I collected from Deja Vu in a small pill bottle. When I checked the seeds some days ago they had a moldy smell; I threw them out. I’ve placed an order for Deja Vu and Flashback from Johnny’s Seed. Should have them in a few days. Have you ever tried the Flashback Mix? James
Yes, I have tried the Flashback mix and liked it. My favorite Flashbacks are Sunshine and Solar but I don’t see them listed at Johnny’s anymore. 🙁
I’ve ordered a packet of Solar Flashback. A tad costly (13.00); the seed was (3.00), but the postage and handling made up the remainder. I got it from Frank Mortan at Wildseeds. Should you order it will be much less. James
Thanks so much for the tip! I saw your correction (wildgardenseed.com) on the other post. I was so disappointed that Johnny’s got rid of most of the flashbacks, but this site has all of them (and ones I didn’t know existed). Cool!
Does the Solar Flashback have different colous of flowers or are all similar to the flower shown on Wildgardenseed? Do you have any pictures from the Solar type? James
That’s weird that I’ve never posted any photos of Solar Flashback on the blog after all these years. I’ll have to change that. See tomorrow’s post (12-4-13). 🙂
I have had blooms that match the photo on the website, but I’ve also had quite a few variations from that mix including a medium-gold with reddish undersides, a near-white with a whisper of pink, pale yellow with yellow overcast and bright-yellow tips, and a mishmash which you’ll see in the photo I post tomorrow.
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