The rules for posting are simple!

1. Every Friday post a photo that includes one or more flowers.
2. Please only post photos you have authority to use.
3. Include a link to this blog in your post - http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.com/
4. Leave the link to your FloralFridayFoto post below on inlinkz.
5. Visit other blogs listed ... comment & enjoy!

When to Post:
inlinkz will be available every Thursday and will remain open until the next Wednesday.

Thursday, 19 January 2017

FFF269 - MARIGOLD

Tagetes erecta, the Mexican marigold, also called Aztec marigold, is a species of the genus Tagetes, family Asteraceae, native to Mexico. Despite its being native to the Americas, it is often called African marigold. In Mexico, this plant is found in the wild in the states of State of México, Puebla, and Veracruz. This plant reaches heights of between 50 and 100 cm. The Aztecs gathered the wild plant as well as cultivating it for medicinal, ceremonial and decorative purposes. It is widely cultivated commercially with many cultivars in use as ornamental plants, and for the cut-flower trade.

 The ray florets have been used in lettuce salads and other foods to add colour and flavour. The dried flower petals, ground to a powder, may be used in poultry feed to ensure a good colouration of egg yolks and broiler skin, especially in the absence of well-pigmented yellow maize in the feed. This is still a use today, but now usually in the form of an extract which may have advantages of lower transport and storage cost, better stability and better utilisation. It is also used to enhance colouring in crustaceans, such as the Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei).

 The oil of the flower may be added to perfumes to infuse an apple scent into them. Today, T. erecta is grown to extract lutein, a common yellow/orange food colour (E161b). The essential oil of the flower contains antioxidants.

 Since prehispanic times, this plant has been used for medicinal purposes. The Cherokee used it as a skin wash and for yellow dye. This marigold may help protect certain crop plants from nematode pests when planted in fields. It is most effective against the nematode species Pratylenchus penetrans.
Join me for Floral Friday Fotos by linking your flower photos below, and please leave a comment once you have done so!
****If you take part in the meme, please show an active link back to this site on your own blog post!****

 Add your own Flower photos on the linky list below and please visit other people's blogs to see their contributions.
Posted by at
Labels: , , , , ,

14 comments:

  1. Penthesilea7719 January 2017 at 07:02

    What cheerful flowers these are! Brighten any garden and good to know they have edible florets...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tom19 January 2017 at 07:22

    ...pretty to look at, but I'm not fond of their smell.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sue (this n that)19 January 2017 at 12:04

    A delightful happy colour - I'm with the others on the smell, but I didn't realise just how many uses this little plant provided. Cheers Nick :D)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous19 January 2017 at 13:04

    You're giving me a great idea about yellow dye! Have heard that gardeners plant them in between others, to protect them from bugs.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous20 January 2017 at 04:55

    Hello Nick,
    I love this colorful and fresh flowers!
    Have a nice weekend,
    moni

    http://www.reflexionblog.de

    ReplyDelete
  6. LindyLouMac20 January 2017 at 07:35

    So pleased I am joining you today. My husband used to plant french marigolds under the tomatoes to keep bugs away.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anne Seltmann20 January 2017 at 09:21

    Hi Nick!

    I am not a friend of this flower, but you reconcile me with your photo. It is wonderfully photographed!

    Greetings

    Anne

    ReplyDelete
  8. Sara Chapman20 January 2017 at 11:34

    Love this flower, and its incredibly distinctive aroma. They need heat to grow well, however, and Seattle is a challenging garden environment for them.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Elke20 January 2017 at 12:45

    Hello Nick,
    I love this color.
    Have a nice weekend,
    Elke
    --------------
    https://promocia.wordpress.com/

    ReplyDelete
  10. Vilt og vakkert21 January 2017 at 04:23

    Heisann.... just beautiful... happy weekend ;:OD)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Liz Needle21 January 2017 at 19:49

    Brilliant, vibrant colours.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Галина Дудар22 January 2017 at 02:07

    beautiful MARIGOLD-чорнобривці-is a favorite flower of ukrainian people

    ReplyDelete
  13. Forest Dream Weaver22 January 2017 at 09:24

    Fabulous blast of colour - thank you Nick!
    Have a great week,
    Ruby

    ReplyDelete
  14. Kristin Aquariann22 January 2017 at 16:04

    How fascinating! The county I live in has a huge poultry industry, so I'm curious if they've used marigold powder.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)