'Bolero' marigold was introduced in 1970 and won an All-America Selections bronze medal the same year. It had a trendsetting color at the time, their was nothing else like it. It was the first marigold that had a gold splashed red coloration. Today most of today's popular French marigold series have a 'Bolero' variety. In fact 'Bonanza Bolero' was an All-America Selections winner in 1999. The plants are large for a french marigold. Mine resemble small shrubs 16" high by 18" wide. It has gotten hard to find the original. Mine came from Ferry Morse Seed who still have a good strain with only a very small percentage of red off-types. I have had a very hard time getting a good photo of it. The following are the best of my hundreds of attempts.
The bottom picture shows them as the star of pool bed #2. This is the view from my kitchen window.
Next spring when your perusing the Ferry Morse Seed rack, pick up a packet and give them a try.
Those look a lot like the ones I told you about that volunteered. I grew them in the front yard in 2007, transplanted volunteers into the veggie garden in 2008...pictured here, 2008
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I know I saved the seeds and planted them the following year, but didn't get many of them that grew true, most ended up as very tall, lanky, yellow marigolds that pretended they were trees. Isn't it odd the first year's volunteers were all good, but not the second year?
They do look very similiar. I have no luck with saving marigold seeds. The past few days they ahve been covered with pollinators- bees, butterflies and skippers. Maybe they were crossed by the bees... My sucees at saving marigold seeds is zero. I think the nights are to humid to save seed here.
DeleteSince the seed is so inexpensive I'll buy more 9and share if course!) and also will try it's dwarfer descendent 'Bonanza Bolero'.