The Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold, otherwise known as the Tagetes Erecta or African Marigold, Aztec Marigold, American Marigold, Big Marigold, is a rather well known annual plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its low maintenance and fast growth, this annual will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its green-colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
Fortunately, taking care of your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold is not too difficult – as long as you follow our guidelines in this Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold Care Guide. Now let’s get started.
In order to take proper care of your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold you’ll need to keep in mind the following guidelines:
- Water: The Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold thrives when watered regularly with increased frequency in hot weather.
- Light: Keep your Tagetes Erecta in an environment where it can receive full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold in soil with moist but well-draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of sand, loam, and clay.
That’s it – sunlight, water and soil! The basic 3 fundamentals for all plant care, and with the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold this is no exception. With these three elements, your leafy friend will live healthy and happy.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold belongs to the Asteraceae family, the genus Tagetes and the species Erecta, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Tagetes Erecta (TAG-e-teez ee-RECK-tuh).
Growing Region
The Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold is a plant native to Mexico and Guatemala.
You might be wondering why your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold’s native region is important. Well, if you know where your plant originally came from, you’ll know which environment conditions it prefers, and with it, knowledge on how to replicate it at home.
With this in mind, the Tagetes Erecta will be most used to the heat zones in the 1 – 12 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b, 11a, 11b and the ideal climate zone is between 1, 1A, 1B, 2, 2A, 2B, 3, 3A, 3B, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, A1, A2, A3, H1, H2.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold is a relatively fast grower, which makes things tricky for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, how big does the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold actually get? What should you expect in terms of size? Let’s dive right in…
The Tagetes Erecta can grow up to 1′ – 4′ (30cm – 120cm) in 1′ – 4′ (30cm – 120cm) and 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm) in 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm).
These dimensions make the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold a relatively medium annual compared to others, so it’s best to keep this fact in mind since it will affect where you want to keep yours at home.
Also, expect it to grow in a wonderful rounded shape, which is something worthwhile to remember when making your garden landscape plans.
This is why experts recommend keeping an area of approximately 18″ – 24″ (45cm – 60cm) free so the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold can spread to its best extent.
Watering
In terms of watering, the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold is a fairly simple plant to take care of. This is mostly because it has a straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Tagetes Erecta thrives when watered regularly with increased frequency in hot weather.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has good drainage properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
But, if you want a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution to watering your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold then you should consider the famous ‘finger’ test. To perform this test, you just need to put your finger in your plant’s soil and determine if it’s moist or not. If it is, then don’t water; if it isn’t, then please do. In any case, this test will allow you to know if your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold needs or does not need water, every time.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold prefers to have soil with good drainage properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of sand, loam, and clay.
This is why most experts agree that the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold requires soil with clay, which will give you the right conditions it needs.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably alkaline, acid or neutral soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold requires full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this annual will do well as long as you keep it in full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Tagetes Erecta in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to full and direct sun (more 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the summer (early, mid, late), and during the fall.
Flowers
You can expect your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold to flower around the summer months from July to September (summer). In particular, this annual is well known for its flowers for cutting and showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold produces some beautiful orange, gold/yellow flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold have a beautiful green color during most of the year.
In particular, they have an alternate and opposite organization in its leaves. You can expect the leaves from your Tagetes Erecta to be around (3-6 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold is well known for being able to attract hummingbirds and butterflies, so keep that in mind when choosing your plant, as you’ll likely end up finding one or another in your garden.
Additionally, it has a special tolerance for clay soil, drought and animals like deer, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Tagetes Erecta will be fine.
Garden
Now, let’s talk garden and how your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold will look best in it.
Most Tagetes Erecta owners agree that this annual will look great in most cottage and rustic gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of coastal garden, city and courtyard, and in informal and cottage styles.
In particular, the Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold’s best location within your garden is in edging, beds and borders, and in patio and containers, others use it for landscaping in a container, edging, border, cutting garden, or a mass planting.
Conclusion
And we’ve come to an end. Fortunately, that’s everything you need to know about your Moonsong® Deep Orange Marigold to keep it safe and sound in your garden or home. Enjoy planting!
