French Marigold Tagetes patula
LATIN NAME: Tagetes patula
COMMON NAME: French Marigold, Tagetes, Dwarf Marigold
The French marigold is one of the cheeriest and most useful of the summer flowers, and its bright, ruffled blooms of gold, orange and mahogany have brightened the gardens of the world for a very long time. It grows as a low, bushy annual, reaching up to sixty centimetres, with finely divided, aromatic leaves and, through a long season from the early summer to the frost, a constant succession of the showy, single or double flower heads in brilliant shades of yellow, orange, gold and red-brown, often with a darker eye, followed by the small, black, needle-like seeds. It is a species of the daisy family, native to Mexico and Guatemala, with several naturalised populations in many other countries, and it is widely cultivated as an ornamental and as a companion plant of the vegetable garden.
The French marigold belongs to the daisy family, Asteraceae, and it is a species of flowering plant native to Mexico and Guatemala, with several naturalised populations in many other countries. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental and a companion plant, and it is prized for its bright, ruffled, long-lasting blooms.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The French marigold has a genuine and growing place in both horticultural and agricultural research. It has been studied in horticulture, since it is one of the cheeriest and most useful of the summer annuals, prized for its bright, ruffled blooms and its long season, and researchers have examined its cultivation, its breeding and its many varieties, while the marigolds as a whole are among the most planted of the garden annuals, and their bright, long-lasting bloom has been examined. The plant has also been studied in agriculture and in the research on the companion plants, since it is a valued companion plant of the vegetable garden, and researchers have examined its value in the garden, while the aromatic roots of the marigolds have been studied for their effect on the soil, and their use in the protection of the vegetable crops has drawn attention in the international gardening press as a gentle and natural method of the garden. The species has also been studied in botany, since it is a member of the daisy family, and its classification and its relationships have been examined. For a plant of such brightness and such use, the French marigold has a rich and growing record of research.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
Ecologically, the French marigold is a generous plant of the summer garden. Its bright blooms feed the bees, the butterflies and the hoverflies, and its aromatic foliage gives cover, while it is a blaze of gold and orange in the beds and the borders of the world.
Its economic value is real. It is one of the most planted of the garden annuals, grown in the beds, the borders and the public plantings around the world, and its value as a companion plant of the vegetable garden has drawn attention in the international gardening press as a gentle and natural helper of the garden, while the flowers have also been used as a natural dye. For a grower, the French marigold is one of the easiest and most generous of the flowers, and for a gardener it brings bright, ruffled bloom from the early summer to the frost. The seeds are among the easiest — sow them directly in a pot of moist soil in spring, keep it in a sunny spot and lightly watered, and the sturdy seedlings appear within a week, growing on to flower through the summer and into autumn.
Uses: Culinary
Preferred variety of marigold for insect control. Compact plants are ideal for interplanting. Has double orange and maroon blossoms.