Caltha palustris
Marsh marigold
Common names: Kingcup
At a glance
- Light
- Partial shade
- Pot size
- from 50 l
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- Flowering
- Mar–May
- Hardiness
- Hardy
- Origin
- Native to Germany
Photo: W. Bulach · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source
Description
The marsh marigold (Caltha palustris) is a native perennial suited to pond edges and wet beds. From March to May it displays bright yellow, glossy flowers that attract early pollinators. It prefers shallow water or permanently wet soil, such as the edge of a garden pond or a waterlogged trough. All plant parts are raw toxic and can cause skin irritation upon contact; keep children and pets away and do not consume.
Care instructions
Plant directly in the shallow water zone of your pond or in permanently moist, nutrient-rich soil, preferably in a container with pond substrate. It tolerates full sun to partial shade and blooms best where roots never dry out. After early summer flowering, remove spent flower stalks to redirect energy to new foliage. The plant retreats in winter and reemerges in spring, usually around mid-March (week 11). Divide larger clumps every few years in autumn to maintain flower abundance.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
FloweringMar–May
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
moist, humus-rich, nutrient-rich, clayey
The marsh marigold wants it permanently wet to waterlogged, ideally right at the pond edge or in shallow water up to 10 cm. A humus-rich, nutrient-rich soil with a high proportion of clay or loam holds moisture best. On normal garden soil without a constant water supply, the plant struggles and hardly flowers. It tolerates summer drought only briefly, after which it retreats.
Feeding
Medium feeder
Months
Mar–Apr
One trowelful of mature compost in early spring, directly into the moist substrate, is enough for the whole season. At the pond edge, you can use pond soil or special substrate tablets for marsh plants instead. What matters is less the amount of fertiliser than constant moisture, without which no nutrient reaches the plant.
Overwintering
The marsh marigold is hardy in Central Europe and withdraws its leaves completely in autumn. The rootstock comes through even severe frost without trouble in the moist soil or under a layer of ice at the pond edge. Cutting back the wilted leaves in late autumn keeps the pond clean, but is not strictly necessary.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
- Division
The easiest way is to divide the rootstock with a sharp spade in early spring or directly after flowering. Replant the pieces straight away in moist substrate so the roots do not dry out. Sowing also works; the fresh seeds germinate best directly after harvest on permanently wet soil and need light to germinate. From seed, it usually takes two years until the first flower.
For your garden
Grow Marsh marigold yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
Free, no time limit
Notes from real gardens
What other gardeners have written down about this variety, anonymous and voluntary.
No notes shared yet. Will you be the first to write one down?