African marigold
ಚೆಂಡು ಹೂगेंदाகட்டிக் கேந்தி
Tagetes erecta
Kew's current name: Tagetes erecta Erecta Group, a kind of Tagetes erecta
- light
- Full sun
- water
- Medium
- tall
- 1.1 m
- wide
- 41 cm
Asteraceae
Also called Mexican Marigold, African Marigold, Aztec marigold
Formerly Tagetes corymbosa, Tagetes elongata, Tagetes heterocarpha, Tagetes remotiflora
When it flowers
Flowers September to December in the tropics.
Read from iNaturalist photographs of it in flower. A month counts at 50% of the best month's flowering share (smoothed over three months) and 10% of its flowering count, from at least 100 flowering observations in the band.
If a child, a pet or anyone may have eaten a plant, contact a doctor or vet straight away, or call the National Poisons Information Centre (AIIMS, New Delhi) on 1800 116 117, free and open 24 hours.
Something wrong with it?About it
- Grows as
- AnnualKew's checklist, not yet checked
- Climate
- SubtropicalKew's checklist, not yet checked
- Wild in
- Mexico to GuatemalaKew's checklist, not yet checked
- Light
- Full sun (6 h or more)Read from NC State Extension and RHS, checked by a majority of its sourcesBacked by both sources. Sources differ: NC State Extension full, part; RHS full
- Height
- 99 cm to 1.2 mRead from NC State Extension and RHS, checked by a majority of its sourcesBacked by both sources. Sources differ: NC State Extension 1–4 ft; RHS 1–1.5 m
- Spread
- 30 cm to 51 cmRead from NC State Extension and RHS, checked by a majority of its sourcesBacked by both sources. Sources differ: NC State Extension 1–2 ft; RHS 0.1–0.5 m
- Water
- Average: moist, well drainedRead from NC State Extension and RHS, checked by a majority of its sourcesBacked by both sources
- Flowers
- White, yellow, orangeRead from NC State Extension and RHS, checked by a majority of its sourcesBacked by both sources. Sources differ: NC State Extension cream, orange, red, white, yellow; RHS orange, white, yellow
- Coldest it survives
- 1 °C (USDA zone 10a)Read from RHS, one source
Not known yet: heat, hottest it survives.
Grow it with
Suggested by a rule, not by a gardener: same climate (kew), flowering when this plant does not (inaturalist), and a different shape.
Cape leadwortFlowers January to August, when this does not
Cotton RosemallowFlowers January to August, when this does not
Crimson bottlebrushFlowers January to August, when this does not
LantanaFlowers January to August, when this does not
LemonFlowers January to August, when this does not
Mexican petuniaFlowers January to August, when this does not
In other languages (12)
- root
- apátzicua, caxyhuitz, guie coba
- Spanish
- Cempasúchil, Flor de muerto, Ruda del pasto
- myn
- masehual-xpuux
- Indonesian
- Kenikir, Tahi Kotok
- Chinese
- 萬壽菊, 法國萬壽菊 (孔雀草), 孔雀草
- French
- Rose d'Inde, Œillet d'Inde
- Czech
- aksamitník vzpřímený, aksamitník rozkladitý
- Russian
- Бархатцы прямостоячие
- Japanese
- アフリカン・マリーゴールド, センジュギク, サンショウギク
- Finnish
- isosamettikukka
- Polish
- Aksamitka wzniesiona
- German
- Aufrechte Samtblume
Where this comes from
- iNaturalist, read 2026-10-24, CC0-1.0 (observation counts)
- Wikidata, read 2026-10-26, CC0-1.0
- Kew's checklist, read 2026-10-24, CC-BY-4.0
- NC State Extension, read 2026-10-25, fact, cited
- RHS, read 2026-10-25, fact, cited
- Wikimedia Commons, read 2026-10-24, CC BY-SA 3.0
- iNaturalist, read 2026-10-25, CC BY
- iNaturalist, read 2026-10-25, CC BY-SA
- iNaturalist, read 2026-10-25, CC BY
- 3D model: Tagetes erecta (built for Vanagrha) by Vanagrha, own
A fact “checked by a majority of its sources” was settled by a vote of the pages it was read from, not by a person reading it; one marked “one source” rests on that page alone. Anything else not marked checked has not been checked yet. Where nothing is known, the page says so rather than guess.