How to Grow Petite Mix Marigolds

Sow Petite Mix marigold seeds indoors in flats of sterile germination soil before the last frost, four to six weeks before you expect soil to be thoroughly warm in spring, for earliest flowering. In most places, starting seeds in March or early April is ideal.

Plant your marigold seeds directly in well-worked garden soil, if you prefer, when soil temperature reaches 75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. At that temperature, marigolds will germinate in five to seven days.

Scatter Petite Mix marigold seeds thinly on top of the filled flats. Cover seeds evenly with 1/8- to 1/4-inch of fine soil and pat it down. Water seeds thoroughly. Place the flat in a sunny window in a warm room and keep it moist.

Water seedlings with a half-strength solution of water-soluble fertilizer a few days after they emerge. Carefully transplant them into six-packs filled with potting soil, one plant per section, when they have developed their first set of true leaves.

Place six-packs in a sunny window in a warm room until the garden soil is thoroughly warm. Transplant young plants into well-worked garden soil in a suitable sunny location, a spot that receives at least six hours of sun per day. Space Petite Mix marigolds about six inches apart in the garden and water them thoroughly.

Water your Petite Mix marigolds regularly but not excessively. Fertilize young plants just once, about a month after transplanting, with full-strength water soluble 10-10-10 fertilizer. Apply fertilizer generously when soil is already moist.