With a wild, sweet, almost citrus-like aroma, Tagetes excels in repelling insects and treating wounds, infections, and respiratory conditions. Although Tagetes is not often acquired for its aroma, it is said that this oil is used extensively in French perfumes. Tagetes essential oil is very powerful! Please use well diluted and avoid during pregnancy. Caution: may cause dermatitis.

Tagetes essential oil has a strong, warm, sweet-herbaceous, distinctive ketonic (pungent) aroma with a very powerful fruity undertone, reminiscent of green apple. Despite its unusual pungency, Tagetes essential oil is used extensively in French perfumes, although in minimal amounts. About 1 kilo of Tagetes oil is produced from about 700 kilos of stems and leaves.

Tagetes minuta var bipinnata is a perennial herb native to the temperate grasslands and mountainous regions of southern South America; it is also cultivated in Madagascar. For millennia, indigenous peoples of South America, particularly Peru, have been using Tagetes minuta var bipinnataas a flavorful beverage, a condiment, and as a decoction made by steeping the dried plant in boiling water to use for the common cold, respiratory distress, and digestive system complaints.

Tagetes essential oil contains about 47% ketones - accounting for its intense aroma and its benefits in respiratory uses. The oil is also rich in many secondary compounds, including monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, oxides and phenols that give it a broad range of activity, as shown, for example, in a 1986 study on Tagetes’s effect on microbial activity.

Aromatherapy Uses: Excellent in repelling insects, and in treating wounds, infections, and respiratory conditions.

Aromatic Profile: Strong, warm, sweet-herbaceous, distinctive ketonic (pungent) aroma with a very powerful fruity-green undertone, reminiscent of green apple.

Appearance: Dark yellow-orange, transparent, mobile liquid.

Blends Well With: Benzoin, Bergamot and other Citrus oils, Chamomile, Champaca, Clary Sage, Coriander, Frankincense, Geranium, Grapefruit, Jasmine, Juniper, Lavender, Lemon, Litsea Cubeba, Mandarin, Orange, Petitgrain, Myrrh, Rose, Sandalwood, Tangerine, Tobacco, Ylang Ylang. 

Safety Considerations: Strongly phototoxic; for application to areas of skin exposed to sunshine, the recommended maximum dermal use level is 0.01%. Dilute before using. A patch test should be performed before use for those with sensitive skin.