Tagetes is a genus of 52 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants in the daisy family. They are native to the area stretching from the southwestern United States into Mexico and south throughout South America. The different species vary in size from 0.05-2.2 m tall. They have pinnate green leaves, and white, golden, orange, yellow, to an almost red floral heads typically to 4-6 cm diameter, generally with both ray florets and disc florets.Uses and Breeding
The foliage has a musky/pungent scent, though some later varieties have been bred to be scentless. It is said to deter some common insect pests (although it is recorded as a food plant for some Lepidoptera larvae including Dot Moth), as well as nematodes. Tagetes are hence often used in companion planting. T. minuta (Khakibush or Huacatay), originally from South America, has been used as a source of essential oil, known as tagette, for the perfume industry as well as a flavourant in the food and tobacco industries in South Africa, where the species is also a useful pioneer plant in the reclamation of disturbed land. Some of the perennial species are deer, rabbit, rodent and javalina resistant. The petals of Tagetes are rich in the orange-yellow carotenoid lutein and as such extracts of T. erecta are used as a food colour .
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