Wednesday, February 25, 2009

French Summer Color


French Summer, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Red-hot marigolds in a garden at a countryside home in the Dauphiné region.

The marigolds in France are amazing - they grow to be bushes 3 feet tall, the largest I've ever seen. Maybe it's the soil, maybe it's the weather, but the gardens in France grow lush and healthy. There are vegetable gardens, or potagers, in the yards of many of the old homes.

Have any of you grown marigolds that just get huge? Most of the marigolds around here are piddly little dwarves...

2 comments:

Chiot's Run said...

Love it. I grew some of these same marigolds in my gardens here at Chiot's Run this past summer. I always used to love marigolds as a kid and then they fell out of favor (I think they're too common). But I'm getting back to loving them for their benefits to the insects.

Dan said...

I think most of the marigolds transplants sold here are hybrids that have been bred to grow short. Maybe you could try finding some heirloom marigold seeds and they may grow similar to the ones in France.

I received marigold seeds in a trade this year. It will be my first time growing them I think, from seed or transplant.