Calendula: One of the most underrated Medicinal Herbs
If you had to choose just a handful of herbs to grow, Calendula (Calendula officinalis) should always make the list. It flowers almost all year round, bringing bright splashes of golden orange to the garden even through the colder months, and right now it's absolutely flourishing, attracting many beneficial insects into the garden.
Calendula is one of the very best herbs for inflamed, damaged, or slow healing skin. It helps stimulate tissue repair, supports healthy circulation to damaged areas, and encourages the growth of new skin. Use it for cuts, scrapes, burns, bruises, insect bites, cracked hands, rashes, eczema, and minor skin infections. You'll find Calendula infused into many of the healing balms and moisturisers because it's so wonderfully soothing and restorative.
Its actions include:
* Anti-inflammatory
* Antimicrobial
* Antifungal
* Antiseptic
* Vulnerary (supports wound healing)
* Lymphatic
* Mildly astringent
* Emmenagogue (supports healthy menstrual flow)
Much of Calendula's anti-inflammatory activity comes from compounds called triterpenoids, along with flavonoids and carotenoids, all of which have been well studied for their beneficial effects. The flowers are the part most used medicinally.
Calendula is also a nutritious edible flower.
The vibrant petals are rich in antioxidant compounds including lutein, beta-carotene, and flavonoids, along with small amounts of vitamin C. These colourful pigments help protect our cells from oxidative stress while supporting healthy skin and eyesight.
The petals have a mild peppery flavour and can be scattered through salads, stirred into rice dishes, baked into cakes and biscuits, infused into vinegars, or sprinkled over almost any meal to brighten both the plate and your day. Even the young leaves are edible, although they're a little more bitter.
Fresh flower heads can be infused into tea, while dried flowers are perfect for storing and using throughout the year. I most often dry them before infusing them into oil to make healing balms and moisturisers, but they can also be made into herbal teas, skin washes, compresses, bath soaks, and soothing gargles.
Calendula is also one of the easiest medicinal herbs to grow. It happily self-seeds, flowers prolifically, attracts bees and other beneficial insects, and makes a fantastic companion plant in the vegetable garden.