Marigolds are one of the most dependable and vibrant blooming flowers you can grow in the summer garden. But while marigolds are known for their tough and hardy nature, these plants still need a little help if you want them to “flower more, bigger and brighter all summer” and “even into late autumn”, according to the gardening pros at This Is My Garden.

Unfortunately, just like your hydrangeas and roses, marigolds can quickly fade without proper care, becoming leggy with fewer blooms and more spent flowers that make the plant look tired and worn out. The good news is that keeping your marigolds blooming strong is not difficult. It comes down to just a few simple tasks done regularly, and one takes priority over the others.

The experts claimed that the “most important task” for keeping your marigolds flowering is to deadhead them regularly. Deadheading is the process of removing old, faded, and dying blooms from the plant.

When marigold blooms begin to dry up, the plant naturally starts shifting its energy toward developing seeds. That’s because, like most flowering plants, the goal of the marigold is to produce seeds for reproduction.

Once the plant begins this process, it puts far less energy into forming new blooms. Instead, it begins to focus on maturing its seed heads. 

The result? Your plant becomes more focused on seed-making than blooming, and flower production slows down dramatically.

But by removing those old flowers right away, you stop the plant from going into seed-making mode. Instead, the plant continues producing fresh buds and flowers, using its energy to keep blooming rather than finishing its lifecycle.

How to deadhead marigolds

The pros claimed that deadheading marigolds is easy to do and takes no more than 10 seconds per plant. All you need to do is look for spent flowers that have faded or started to dry out. These often begin to turn brown or shrivel and will have a papery feel to them.

Once you see a spent bloom, pinch it off just above the first set of leaves or the next flower bud below it. You can use your fingers or a small pair of garden scissors to cut. 

It’s best to deadhead every few days or at least once a week. The more consistently you do it, the more flowers your plant will produce.

With regular deadheading, marigold plants will remain full, bushy, and vibrant well past late summer.