Organic Herbs We Love: Calendula

by Lisa ShelleySep 07, 2022

Neal's Yard Remedies Canada
Lisa Shelley

Organic Herbs We Love: Calendula

Since the early days, Calendula Officinalis (calendula) has been a herb at the heart of Neal’s Yard Remedies.

What is Calendula?

A member of the daisy family, calendula (also known as marigold) is a fast-growing annual or biennial plant with an aromatic scent and vivid orange flower heads. It’s the star ingredient in our heritage Calendula collection and a staple used in over half of our wider product range.

What is calendula used for?

Of the many reasons we love calendula, the herbaceous plant’s deeply calming benefits to the skin make it one of our favourites for natural beauty and wellbeing. What’s more, it’s a versatile wonder; every part of the calendula plant can be used in many ways and for various purposes, from edible petals perfect for sprinkling on salads to dried flowers that make for delicious herbal infusions, like our dried herb marigold. It can also be crafted into herbal tinctures or calendula macerated oil – excellent for soothing sensitive skin.

We’re passionate about unleashing the power of natural and organic botanicals, so we’re always digging into external studies to discover the properties and benefits of our ingredients. Recently, we conducted some efficacy research on our unique, homegrown and organic calendula tincture, which revealed high levels of antioxidants.

Sown and grown at our Dorset eco factory

Calendula originated in the Mediterranean region but is now naturalized in England. Seed can be sown during spring and autumn, and the plant grows and thrives in light, free-draining soil under full sun or partial shade. We harvest our organically grown calendula in the gardens of our north Dorset eco factory, with every step from sowing seed to bottling product happening within mere metres of one another, leaving zero waste along the way.

It’s one of our favourite examples of how we work to support organic farming, minimize our carbon footprint and tread lightly on the earth.

Picked, blended and bottled by us, for you

In the summer months, our team of gardeners and willing staff spend time in our marigold gardens picking the calendula flowers. We combine the fresh flower heads with a mixture of water and certified organic alcohol before leaving them to macerate for around three weeks.

Once brewed, we transfer the plant material into a linen bag and place it in a stainless-steel drum, which gets pressed through a sieve to extract the liquid and make a tincture. When the marigolds are pressed to make the tincture, the marc that remains – a cake of beautiful plant material – is added to our compost bins. Meanwhile, the remaining seeds are collected and saved, ready for replanting the following year, while the old plants are put onto the compost heap.

After 6 to 10 months, we use the compost around our gardens to nourish our soils, grow more plants, and support biodiversity through these organic farming techniques. Watch how we create our marigold tincture below.