The calendula came back on its own
I went down to weed the apothecary row this morning and found it had quietly reseeded itself. Dozens of calendula seedlings, scattered well beyond where I sowed them last spring, all from flowers I left to go over in autumn.
Calendula does this if you let it. A few heads left to dry on the plant drop their curled seeds into the soil, and they sit out the winter perfectly happily. Come late spring you get a free crop — usually in better spots than you'd have chosen yourself.
What I actually did
Very little, which is the point. I thinned the thickest clumps so each plant has room to bush out, moved a handful of the strays to fill gaps along the fence, and left the rest. By midsummer this whole strip will be orange, busy with bees, and giving me more petals to dry than I know what to do with.
It's a small lesson the plot keeps teaching: the plants that earn their place are the ones that don't need me hovering. Sow them once, let a few go to seed, and they'll keep the row going on their own.