M is for…the Midway Point (and Marigolds)! #AtoZ Challenge

We’re midway through the A-Z Challenge! Hang in there, fellow bloggers! You’re doing great!

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Too often in our modern society, we overcomplicate things. We stand in line at Starbucks to order fancy coffees instead of brewing a pot at home. We hire a nutritionist when maybe we just need to cut the French fries and soda from our diets.

So of course, in a world filled with exotic plants flaunting expressive blooms and haunting fragrances, the lowly marigold may not seem like the kind of plant to write about. Short, with modest small blooms of red, orange, and gold, it’s more wallflower than belle of the ball.

Yet marigolds have their benefits. For one thing, they’re pretty to look at and can brighten up a landscape. Throw a few marigold flowers into your salad for a tasty and colorful addition to the greens. Dried flowers can be used as a tea high in antioxidants, and have anti-inflammatory properties.

Marigolds can also serve as “companion plants,” repelling nematodes in particular from the garden. They can attract slugs, though, so they both giveth and taketh away. Slugs are the bane of my existence!

Still, from marigolds I can learn about simplicity. If I have a problem, try the easiest solution first. I don’t have to be flashy to get attention–it’s okay to be quiet and unassuming. Steady self-confidence is the order of the day.