Tagetes erecta / Kilimanjaro sugar & spice white

Description

The unusual stunning white marigold produces large 8cm flowers on top of dense dark green foliage. Flowers open from creamy white to light green and mature to vanilla white. They have a lovely, sweet scent, different from other marigolds. Edible petals with a slightly bitter, citrusy/spice flavor make a pretty garnish on rice, salads, or desserts. Marigolds attract butterflies and are fairly drought-tolerant. Dense heads with ruffled petals. Great for borders, beds, containers, and as a cut flower. Slower growing than other marigold varieties.

Reliable strain for producing good size roots. Medium green in color with a slightly serrated leavcrystal-white headed marigold that is sure to amaze! This variety has lovely 3-inch creamy-white blooms that really stand out from the traditional gold, yellow, and bronze marigolds! White marigolds were long in the making; in fact, Burpee Seed Company spent 56 years of searching and breeding before finding success. After years of trying, David Burpee offered $10,000 to the first home gardener who sent in the right seeds to help make a real white variety; thousands of gardeners responded for years. One lady, Alice Vonk of Sully, Iowa, sent seeds for 21 years, and in 1975, Burpee awarded her the coveted prize for her work—after the company had spent more than five decades and $250,000 testing during the contest years. Now there are several white varieties, including this beauty that was developed by Hem Zaden seed company, on a farm on Mount Kilimanjaro.es for salad use. Chicory is a salad addition very similar to lettuce but with a distinct flavor. It has more of a bitter taste to it than lettuce, but the blanching of the leaves lessens this bitterness. Text from: https://www.rareseeds.com/marigold-kilimanjaro-white

Sow seeds several inches apart in a container of well-drained seed starting mix 4 to 6 weeks before the last expected frost date. Outdoors: Direct sow at last spring frost date. Cover 1/4 inch deep, keep moist, and provide a strong light source until ready to go outside. Transplant 8 to 10 inches apart once the weather warms up after gradually acclimating seedlings to outdoor conditions. These cheerful marigolds are quick to bloom, carefree, and non-fussy. Their profusion of long-lasting flowers and handsome blue-green foliage is perfect in any sunny spot and makes long blooming handsome borders. Feed and water regularly.