Question

In Tagetes, flowers are
a. Acropetally arranged
b. Basipetally arranged
c. Centripetally arranged
d. Mixed arranged

Answer 1

Hint: The plants belonging to the genus Tagetes are mostly annual or perennial. The flowers generally possess ray florets and disc florets. In these plants, the old and new flowers are arranged in different ways. The two flowers (old and new) do not occur at the same point or area and are present in a distinct manner.

Complete answer:
In Tagetes, flowers are centripetally arranged.
In a centripetal arrangement, the development of flowers towards the inside. This means that the old flowers are towards the edges of the plant and the new flowers are towards the centre. The youngest flower would be at the centre and the oldest flower would be at the extreme edge or outer side of the plant.
The flowers of Tagetes are generally yellow, orange, white, and golden in colour and their floral heads can be 4-6 cm in diameter.

Hence, the correct answer is option (C).

Additional information:
• Acropetal arrangement: it is a type of arrangement in which new flowers and buds are present at the apex of the plant pedicel, whereas the older flowers are present towards the base.
• Basipetal arrangement: it is a type of arrangement in which the old flowers are present at the top of the plant and the new flowers are present towards the base.

Note: The word ‘centripetal’ is used in various fields and aspects and it always means ‘towards the centre’. Although different species of Tagetes vary in the heights, they can grow as tall as 2.2 m. The flowers in different species of Tagetes are generally bulky looking and grow from outside to inside in succession.