Calendula officinalis
Calendula officinalis
Orange flowers in gardens and waste places.
Upright stem with opposite leaves.
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Plant type
- Annual herb
- Safety level (indicative)
- Generally recognised as safe
What the safety levels mean (expand legend)
- Generally recognised as safe. Often a common herb with reasonable harvest and use; still read the specific warnings on the card.
- Information. Primarily informational — details in the text and warnings below matter most.
- Caution. Needs extra care (dose, duration, sensitive groups, interactions).
- Risky. Significant risks — verify sources, contraindications and professional guidance.
- Not for home experimentation. Not suitable to experiment with at home without knowledge and certainty.
- High risk for internal use. Particular risk with internal use (e.g. alkaloids); avoid prolonged or irresponsible dosing.
- Not specified. Level not filled in yet — rely on individual warnings and links below.
Photograph on Wikimedia Commons (Public domain).
Plant habit
Quick overview
A practical summary; details are in the sections below.
- Safety grade
- Generally recognised as safe·details
- Scientific sources on the card
- Yes — sources are listed with claims·Science section
- When and what to harvest
- Flower — May–July
- Processing methods
Herbal infusion (tea), Herbal oil, Honey macerate
All methods and recipes on the card- Topics and symptoms
Bruises & scars (topical care), Complexion and local blemishes, Digestion…
Topics section · Symptoms overview
Identification and mix-ups
Annual to biennial herb in Asteraceae with erect, branched, finely sticky-hairy stems and alternate, oblong to spatulate leaves with entire or finely toothed margins, sessile with a cordate-amplexicaul base. Flowerheads large (4-7 cm), golden-yellow to orange, with numerous ray florets around the periphery and tubular florets in the centre. Characteristic strong balsamic to resinous scent. Achenes strongly curved or hooked, variable in shape.
Possible mix-ups and risks
Most frequently confused with marigold (Tagetes spp.), also Asteraceae, which has pinnate leaves with a distinctly pungent, spicy scent quite different from calendula. Confusion is also possible with crown daisy (Glebionis coronaria), which has twice-pinnate leaves and white or yellow ray florets. Calendula is distinguished by its unmistakably simple entire leaves, sticky stems, and curved to hooked achenes.
Similar herbs
- Matricaria chamomilla
Flower teas and garden symbolism; different botanical family and dried-material handling.
- Rosa canina
Flowers and floral parts in the garden tradition; with roses watch for thorns and pick the correct rosehip species.
Topics and symptoms
More topics are in the symptoms and topics overview.
- Bruises & scars (topical care)Traditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- Complexion and local blemishesTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- DigestionTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- Insect bites (topical)Traditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- SkinScientific· Preliminary or weaker scientific findingsTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- Skin after sunTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- Women's topics in folk herbalismTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
Sources
Geographic occurrence
Czechia
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Widespread occurrence in the Czech Republic in suitable habitats.
Austria
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Wave 1 (seed): broad range in Central Europe — verify with floras and national checklists.
Germany
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Wave 1 (seed): broad range in Central Europe — verify with floras and national checklists.
Hungary
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Wave 1 (seed): broad range in Central Europe — verify with floras and national checklists.
Poland
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Wave 1 (seed): broad range in Central Europe — verify with floras and national checklists.
Slovakia
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Wave 1 (seed): broad range in Central Europe — verify with floras and national checklists.
France
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
France: occurrence for the main European catalogue taxa — refine with national atlases / red lists.
Myanmar
Occasional (garden, cultivation, or fringe of the range)
Myanmar: cosmopolitan weeds and plantains; basil (Old World tropics); calendula often cultivated. Further species = additional herbs aligned with Myanmar flora.
Morocco
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Maghreb top 20 — verify with atlases, national floras, and cultivated occurrence.
Canada
Occasional (garden, cultivation, or fringe of the range)
Canada / North America top 20 — verify with floras, naturalised populations, and cultivated spread.
Australia
Occasional (garden, cultivation, or fringe of the range)
Australia top 20: archaeophytes and endemics — verify with national floras and introduced-species references.
South Africa
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
South Africa top 20 — verify with atlases, fynbos, and savanna context.
Harvest
- FlowerMay–July
léto
Region: CzechiaNotes: Inflorescence in dry weather.
Storage
- Drying(Leaf)
Keep dried plant material in a sealed container.
- Light:
- Out of direct UV.
- Moisture:
- Low relative humidity.
Processing methods on this herb card
Infusion or brief extraction in hot water; usually without long boiling.
Full method description (from the catalogue)
In the narrow sense, “tea” often means an infusion: you pour water just off the boil over the dried plant matter and let it steep for a few minutes. Temperature, steep time, and the herb-to-water ratio change both flavour and what dissolves into the liquid.
Compared with a decoction, heat exposure is shorter and gentler; tender leaves and flowers are often better as an infusion than with prolonged simmering. For each herb, always follow the plant card for suitable plant part, preparation, and safety notes — general rules never replace species-level judgement.
Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: no
Calendula officinalis — Herbal infusion (tea) (Flower)
About 10 minBeginnerScience profile
Macerating herbs in a vegetable oil (cold or with gentle heat).
Full method description (from the catalogue)
Herbal oil is made by steeping dried or fresh material in oil (e.g. olive, sunflower) over time, sometimes with gentle warming. The result is not steam-distilled essential oil — it is a different extract type and usage (often topical or culinary per recipe).
Temperature, light, and material moisture affect shelf life; rancid oil must be discarded.
Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: no
Macerating plant material in honey (a honey conserve).
Full method description (from the catalogue)
Honey as a maceration medium creates a viscous mixture with its own biochemistry: water activity, acidity, and enzymes influence shelf life and flavour. Traditionally it is used with delicate flowers or herbs when you want aroma bound into honey.
Infant botulism guidance for honey and honey safety in general sit outside a single herb page; maceration time, ratios, and storage must follow a vetted recipe and source, not this general overview alone.
Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: no
Traditional / spiritual use
Kept separate from science — entries are cultural or symbolic, not medical advice.
Related guides in the library
Orange marigold rings in the garden bed
General
Traditional useFolk useHerbal lorePot marigold belongs to ornamental beds, orange petal rings, and informal petal teas in folk memory. Warm colour is atmosphere, not a skin or digestion treatment claim.
- Form:
- čaj, masti v lidové praxi
- Claim strength:
- Tradition
- Source note:
- Garden and cosmetic tradition — separate from scientific product claims.
Scientific notes
Each claim lists a study type and a source (URL or DOI) where available. Dose notes from the literature are informational only.
How to read evidence strength and study type labels
Labels summarise how the catalogue entry is tagged — they are not a medical verdict on efficacy. For every row, read the summary, limitations and source link.
Evidence strength
- Evidence level not specified
- The author did not grade the record; judge from the summary, limitations and source link.
- Narrative / orientational literature
- Descriptive or expert literature without controlled group comparison — context rather than proof of effect.
- Weak evidence
- Study or conclusion with major methodological limits; treat only as a pointer for further reading.
- Preliminary findings
- First or smaller studies — interesting direction, not the final word on efficacy or safety.
- Moderate strength of evidence
- Moderate strength by study design; sample and context limits still apply.
- Stronger evidence
- Stronger design or consistency of results within the study's stated limits.
- Review article
- A review summarises multiple sources; quality depends on review method and field.
Study type
- Narrative / expert text
- Expert text or overview without a classical study design.
- In vitro study
- Cell culture or test-tube experiment — does not show an effect in the body.
- Animal study
- Animal model — transfer to humans is not automatic.
- Observational study
- Observing groups without random treatment assignment; confounding is possible.
- Clinical trial
- Human clinical trial; sample size and control group matter.
- Randomised controlled trial
- Randomised controlled trials are among the stronger designs when well conducted.
- Review study
- A review aggregates multiple papers — quality depends on selection rules.
- Systematic review
- Systematic review with explicit search and selection methodology.
- Meta-analysis
- Statistical pooling of studies; outcome depends on input data and heterogeneity.
- Regulatory assessment / monograph (EMA, WHO…)
- Regulatory body summary for a herbal product — different context from a single RCT; often about products, not home tea.
- Expert monograph (herbal preparations)
- Structured literature summary for a plant or drug — quality depends on author and edition year.
Calendula extracts are investigated for skin repair endpoints in some clinical models; internal use evidence is thinner and overlaps with cosmetic safety testing.
Evidence level not specifiedNarrative / expert textLimitations: Asteraceae allergy; product-dependent composition; wound care must follow clinical severity and hygiene rules.
Images
The main photo is in the card header. More images will appear here when available.
Safety
What the warning types mean
The type on each warning helps group themes — it does not replace the separate severity badge.
- Internal use
- Risks from swallowing, extracts, duration of use or concentration for internal use.
- Interactions / medicines
- Possible effect on medicines or concurrent treatment — check sources and a professional.
- Raw plant parts
- Raw, unripe or poorly prepared plant parts can be dangerous.
- Toxins and regulation
- Toxic constituents or regulated compounds (e.g. in distillates).
- Contact with the plant
- Skin or mucosa irritation from contact with fresh plant or sap.
- Allergy
- Allergic reactions, often linked to family sensitisation.
- Harvesting and contamination
- Contamination, species mix-ups or harvesting from unsuitable places.
No structured safety records yet.