Abstract
Importance of medicinal plants to health care has been great and herbal preparations are being produced at industrial scale particularly in developing countries. The plant products obtained have a long history of use in therapeutics, aromatherapy and food depending on the chemical constituents and their bioactivity. In the recent past, marigolds have received a great attention in scientific research, because of their multiple use and also the information available about their phytochemistry and bioactivity. Tagetes species commonly known as marigold is native to Mexico, being used for medicinal and ornamental purposes. The plant is useful due to its unique phytoconstituents for a range of diseases and disorders and is reportedly effective against piles, kidney troubles, muscular pain, ulcers and wound healing and the flowers are helpful in fever, stomach and liver complaints and also in eye diseases. In India, marigold is also extensively used on religious and social occasions such as in the beautification of mandaps and pooja places; offerings at temples; marriage decorations and landscape planning due to variable size and colour of its flower. Present review is an effort to bring together the different strategies developed for the growth and cultivation of marigold, its ecophysiological and remediation relevance under a variety of environmental conditions and possible allelopathic potential. It includes reports on pharmacological aspects like antibacterial, antifungal, larvicidal, hepatoprotective, insecticidal, mosquitocidal, nematicidal, wound healing, antioxidant, anticancer and antidiabetic properties/activity of Tagetes.
Highlights
Tagetes, a native of Mexico and other warmer parts of America, naturalized in both tropics and subtropics [1], belongs to family Asteraceae
Nowadays application of natural pigments and dyes is diverse ranging from food, cosmetic, pharmaceutical to textile industries and they may provide a real alternative to their artificial counterparts because of the dangers involved in their use for living beings and environment [6] [7]
This review focuses on the important medicinal, remediational and allelopathic properties of Tagetes and the different strategies for the better growth and cultivation with special reference to India
Summary
A native of Mexico and other warmer parts of America, naturalized in both tropics and subtropics [1], belongs to family Asteraceae. The name marigold is applied to several genera of Asteraceae (compositae) with golden or yellow capitula and there are about 33 species of the genus Tagetes, five of which have been introduced in Indian gardens viz. T_erecta L., T. minuta L., T. patula L., T. lucida and T. tenuifolia [3]. Tagetes erecta L. is commonly grown for its bloom and natural dye (xanthophyll) extraction and others for their essential oils [4]. African marigold is one of the most important commercial flower crops grown in India and the world over. The flowers of marigold especially African type (Tagetes erecta L.) are one of the richest sources of xanthophyll pigments in the flower petals, of which lutein accounts for approximately 80% - 90% [12]. This review focuses on the important medicinal, remediational and allelopathic properties of Tagetes and the different strategies for the better growth and cultivation with special reference to India
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