Biological Traits and Genetic Relationships Amongst Cultivars of Three Species of Tagetes (Asteraceae)

Abstract

Marigolds (Tagetes spp.) are multifunctional flowering plants belonging to the Asteraceae family, well-known and widespread for their ornamental value and many other uses. In this study, morphological differences and genetic relationships among 21 cultivars of three species of marigold (Tagetes patula, T. erecta and T. tenuifolia) were analysed. Results have revealed obvious differences among genotypes, starting from the morphological characteristics of the seeds and their capacity to germinate to adult plant morphological characteristics, both between cultivars and species. The genotypic differences were manifested in considerable variation in the development of phenological stages and the main morphological traits of plants and flowers. PCA and hierarchical clustering analyses of morphological traits revealed a homogeneous grouping of cultivars within each species, except for Orion, belonging to T. patula, which was closer to T. erecta cultivars. A subset of 13 cultivars from the three species was subjected to SSR analysis, revealing considerable genetic diversity and good separation between T. patula on the one side and T. erecta and T. tenuifolia on the other. The observed heterozygosity was much lower than the expected heterozygosity, revealing a high degree of fixation. The results reveal that the three species evaluated have considerable morphological and genetic diversity, which has important implications for assessing genetic diversity, conserving germplasm and selecting parents for new breeding works in marigolds.

Two Growing-Season Warming Partly Promoted Growth but Decreased Reproduction and Ornamental Value of Impatiens oxyanthera

“…The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) simplifies complex problems by using hierarchical methods, which not only contain subjective logical judgment but also make full use of the advantages of quantitative analysis [58,59]. It plays an important role in screening plant resource varieties [60][61][62] and evaluating ornamental value [36]. In previous studies, the ornamental value of multiple species was evaluated by using AHP [63].…”

Effect of Varied Salinity on Marigold Flowers: Reduced Size and Quantity Despite Enhanced Antioxidant Activity

“…Pigments such as zeaxanthin and lutein from marigold flowers have also been used as food coloring agents [26,27]. Nevertheless, most marigold plants are highly affected by abiotic factors such as drought and temperature [28][29][30]. However, some marigold species and varieties are viewed as promising cash crops that can grow in saline environments, although with significant challenges.…”

Interspecific hybridization with African marigold (Tagetes erecta) can improve flower-related performance in French marigold (T. patula)

“…The African marigold (Tagetes erecta) is an annual plant in the Marigold genus of the Asteraceae family (Panwar et al, 2013;Zhang et al, 2020). It is a plant native to Mexico and South America (Sreekala and Raghava, 2003;Cicevan et al, 2015) and is commonly cultivated as an ornamental plant worldwide (Vasudevan, et al, 1997;Panwar et al, 2013;Cicevan et al, 2022). It may be used for more than landscaping only; it is widely grown for loose flowers used for religious offerings and making garlands in India (Panwar et al, 2018;Kumar et al, 2019;Patel et al, 2019).…”