Calendula Mary's Gold

One of my favorite flowers to grow in my winter garden is Calendula officinalis. It seems to withstand hard garden frosts and just keeps blooming into late fall. Calendula was used as a stewing herb in the common Medieval kitchen for its healing power for gastrointestinal ailments.

But Calendula also had an honored place among Mary's flower and was given the name Mary's Gold. The seeds of this plant look just like tiny green elf ears and can be sown in early spring or early fall. It grows easily with a bit of sunshine and little water.

One of the most amazing qualities of this golden beauty is the gentle healing power Calendula contains. It is gentle enough to be used in many natural baby products, but is powerful enough that it was used during the Confederate War on soldiers, to fight against the affection of gangrene.

Calendula removes infection like the gentle presences of the Divine Mother. This flower can teach us the valuable lessons of the power of gentleness. So today we offer the golden orange petals of Mary's Gold in the Christ Crib reminding us of the ways of gentleness.