species 23,844 observations

Mexican Marigold

Tagetes erecta

Field notes

Tagetes erecta, the Aztec marigold, Mexican marigold, big marigold, cempaxochitl or cempasúchil, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Tagetes native to Mexico and Central America. Despite being native to the Americas, it is often called the African marigold. In Mexico, this plant is found in the wild in the states of México, Michoacán, Puebla, Veracruz and Guerrero.

This plant reaches heights of between 20 and 90 cm (7.9 and 35.4 in). The Aztecs gathered the wild plant as well as cultivating it for medicinal, ceremonial and decorative purposes; it was introduced to Europe after the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire and colonization and became widely cultivated commercially with many cultivars in use as ornamental plants, and for the cut-flower trade.

Some authorities regard Tagetes patula (the French marigold) as a synonym of Tagetes erecta.