Tagetes Absolute and Tagetes Oil

#### Tagetes Absolute—and Tagetes Oil. (See also **Marigold**** **(calendula absolute) and **Tagetes**** ****Patula**). From the overground parts of the plant, **Tagetes Glandulifera**, harvested just after the inflorescence, an essential oil (by steam distillation) or an absolute (from concrète by extraction) is obtained. The plant grows wild in south Africa, East Africa and Nigeria (west Africa), often in such abundance that it is considered a weed. It is presumably of South American origin, and has followed war transports to south Africa and Australia, and then further expanded its domain to Europe, Asia and North America. The oil is distilled in the Union of South Africa, in Kenya, Nigeria and France, occasionally in Australia. The absolute is produced in Nigeria and France. It is thus one of the few perfume plants which are distilled in all five continents of the world. **Tagetes Absolute **is an orange-green or dark greenish-brown colored, semi-liquid mass or viscous liquid. Its odor is intensely herbaceous green, with a sweet-fruity undertone and a somewhat bitter-herby dryout. Some people find the odor very pleasant; others find it highly disagreeable. In perfumery, it is necessary to work it up into high dilution in order to obtain pleasant and useful effects. It blends well with sage clary. flouve, tobacco extracts, bergamot oil and other citrus oils, linalool, phenylethyl alcohol, anthranilates, etc., all representing fruity-herbaceous and tobacco-like notes. The essential **Oil of Tagetes Glandulifera **is a mobile, dark yellow to orange-yellow colored liquid which solidifies upon exposure to air, daylight and moisture. It can be kept in diethyl phthalate solution when it is well protected against ultra-violet light and moisture, and preferably under antioxidant protection. The main constituent, Tagetone, an unstable ketone, is presumably responsible for the peculiar odor and for the resinification and unstability of the oil. The production of **Tagetes**** ****Oil**** **in Nigeria is of fairly recent date, but the total world production is still at a very low figure (estimated for *1959 *at less than 100 kilos). There is no suitable substitute for true **Tagetes Oil **or **Tagetes Absolute**, and once these materials are established in perfume formulas, the oil must be procured somehow. In spite of the typical apple-like note in highly diluted preparations of **Tagetes**, the oil has not found significant use in flavors. It is quite possible that Tagetone is harmful to the human organism.