6 reasons why our eyes love marigolds
The deep orange and gold pompom flowers known as marigolds that we see in early spring are actually great for our eyes! Could you have guessed even one of these six reasons? Have a read through and test your knowledge about these sweet little blossoms.
1. They’re flowers!
Well, most obviously, because they’re bright and colorful flowers! And flowers are always capable of beautifying the world we live in. They are also a welcome sign of spring since they grow after the frost has passed and the warmer weather sets in. Marigold blooms naturally occur in golden, orange, yellow, and white color hues, often with maroon highlights, and are a beautiful sight to set our eyes upon.
2. They are a great addition to your garden
Marigolds are excellent additions to your garden for a variety of reasons. First, they can capture the most gorgeous colors of sunset, such as with the Sunset Gold variety. Second, they are known to have incredible heat tolerance and masses of blooms all season long. Third, they attract helpful insects (think: bees and other important pollinators) and keep away unwanted pests and critters that could otherwise wreak havoc on your bounty of fruits and vegetables. If you live in an area with deer, you’ll be happy to know that they don’t like marigold’s strong, pungent scent.
3. Artists are drawn to the significance of flowers
Famous paintings and artwork featuring flowers date back centuries as creative minds in Western art have used flowers to tell their stories of “reproduction or decay, purity or promiscuity, love or hardship.”[i] Within this century, one famous 43-foot-tall sculpture of a West Highland Terrier located in Bilbao, Spain, is blanketed with a colorful carpet of over 60,000 flowering plants, including marigolds, begonias, impatiens, lobelia, and petunias. We wonder what that story is intended to tell, but it sure would be a sight to see!
4. A symbol of celebration
The bloom itself symbolizes beauty, warmth, creativity, a drive to succeed, and celebration of the dead. Marigolds are known as the flower of the dead in pre-Hispanic Mexico and are still regarded as an important symbol used during Day of the Dead festivities!
5. Marigolds are edible
Marigolds are classified as edible flowers, and though most people don’t actually eat them, the nutritional value that stems from their natural plant compounds is really good for the health of our eyes. In fact, the antioxidant power found in marigolds rivals that of the certain colorful fruits and vegetables that we are told to include in our everyday diet! It makes sense then that nutritional supplements are made to offer another way to consume the excellent nutrition that marigolds offer.
6. Nutrients accumulate in our eyes
Clues from within our body tell us that the macula of the eye requires a high concentration of lutein and zeaxanthin. And marigolds are some of the richest plant sources of these nutrients! In the eye, these nutrients provide functional support and protection against things like ultraviolet radiation (UV) from sunlight, exposure to blue light from digital devices, and age-related eye diseases. Research confirms this concentration begins to accumulate while still in utero – as early as 6 weeks gestation – to develop the protection the eyes need throughout our lifespan.
Hopefully, you’ve learned a few new things about marigolds so that next time you see one, you’ll see them for not only their beauty but also for their historical significance and nutritional power. With the addition of a nutritional supplement made with the power of marigold flowers, you could easily include the recommended 24 mg of lutein and zeaxanthin on a daily basis. These can be found in powders, gummies, capsules, and more for people of all ages.
[i] https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-van-gogh-okeeffe-art-historys-famous-flowers