Tagetes foetidissima is a Mesoamerican species of marigolds in the family Asteraceae. It is widespread across much of Mexico and Central America from Tamaulipas to Costa Rica.Turner, B. L. 1996. The Comps of Mexico: A systematic account of the family Asteraceae, vol. 6. Tageteae and Athemideae. Phytologia Memoirs 10: i–ii, 1–22, 43–93 Common name is "flor de muerto," Spanish for "death flower."Williams, L. O. 1976. Tribe VI, Helenieae. En: D. L. Nash & L. O. Williams (Eds), Flora of Guatemala - Part XII. Fieldiana, Bot. 24(12): 383Strother, J. L. 1999. Compositae–Heliantheae s. l. 5: 1–232. In D.E. Breedlove (ed.) Flora of Chiapas. California Academy of Sciences, San FranciscoVillarreal, J. A. 2003. Compositae. Tribu Tageteae. En: Rzedowski, G. C. de y J. Rzedowski (eds.). Flora del Bajío y de regiones adyacentes. Fascículo 113. Instituto de Ecología-Centro Regional del Bajío. Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología y Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad. Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, México.
Tagetes foetidissima is a branching annual herb sometimes as much as 100 cm (40 inches) tall. Leaves are up to 9 cm (3.6 inches) long, divided into 11-29 toothed leaflets. One plant produces many small flower heads in a flat-topped array, each head contains 5 small, pale yellow ray florets surrounding about 7 greenish-yellow disc florets. The head is cylindrical, with purple bracts along the outside.
The plant grows in disturbed areas and has been reported as a weed in cultivated maize fields. It is aromatic but with an odor that most humans find disagreeable.Conabio, Malezas de México, Tagetes foetidissima DC.
References
External links Discover Life with photos CONABIO Tagetes foetidissima DC. photos plus links to pages with more information