In 2020, I was locked in a dark room for two weeks in the macabre Victorian government practice of hotel quarantine. I still get the horrors thinking about it. I had never been so grateful to come home and see the bright oranges and yellows shining in the depths of our southern winter. I burst into tears at the sight of them. It really was a welcome home.

Whilst it is impossible to pick a favourite, calendula is loud in it's ability to command my attention. In the winter gloom it smiles and it dances in the sunshine. It plants itself in the cracks of the garden path so I don't have to bother. I see it from the kitchen window and the bedroom too. I bought the seeds years ago on a trip to Bali and they've been happily showing off in my garden since. I don't understand why everyone doesn't plant them.

The seeds are so abundant and I usually pick them to gift to people or scatter about so they grow everywhere.

My Nana was a calendula fan. She would make balm by infusing the flowers in lard. Thats the oil they had readily available at the time. Personally I'd prefer olive oil or coconut or even jojoba because a calendula infused jojoba is kind for the face. I think of my Nana all the time when I think of calendula. She'd use it on dry skin and excema.

Some people say to put the oil in sunlight but I prefer to soak them in oil in the dark for six weeks. There's something about the gentleness of this, and all good thinks gather strength in darkness. I use the dry flowers as the damp ones might encourage mould. You can also gently warm the oil in a double boiler on very low heat for a few hours. The oil turns a beautiful yellow. Then it's just a matter of mixing in some beeswax and voila: salve. It's antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial - so think anything skin irritation or wounds from nappy rash and excema to insect bites and sunburn. It’s also used as an antiseptic. I like the idea of combining it with lemon balm after reading @traisto post where she she uses melissa to a similiar purpose.

I also use calendula as a sprinkle on nearly every meal I make. As I collect veggies from the garden, I always throw a few in the basket, ripping off the petals to garnish meals. I don't know how much one has to eat to gain benefit but I am a big believer in ingesting a wide variety of nutrients through plants and ones fresh from the garden have a particular vitality to them don't you think? And ingesting calendula and it's cheerful sunniness seems a lovely thing to do.

This post was written in response to The Herbal Hive's community challenge which comes out every month. It asks which herb or medicinal plant you are most grateful for. Which herb 🌿 do you feel gratitude for?