I would like to do this.. I live on the Texas coast... I am a stay at home mom and have plenty of time to do this. I can test several varieties...just let me know what you need me to do:)

Hi Jennifer,
I responded via email.
Thanks,
Bob

I'm confused now. I thought marigolds were heat/humidity tolerant but not cold tolerant. I also thought they were from South America and Mexico both humid and hot but frost free.

I would be interested in trying a bed of the different heights. What is the quantity of each variety do they want you to grow. How large of a flowerbed do they want you to designate to them?
I am in Grand Prairie, Texas (Dallas county) zone 8
Please let me know & I will be happy to give it a whirl.
Thanks,
Debbie

Hi pjtexgirl,
I was in a small Mississippi town once many years ago on business. They didn't have weather stations back then, just a permanent live TV picture of a thermometer and humidistat :-). The humidity was 100% and the temperature was 100 degrees. No, it wasn't raining but I felt I could swim from the hotel room to the car.
On some business trips to the Caribbean it has been so humid that the air has been thick. Couldn't make it from my room to the front desk (located outside)without having my clothes feel that they were soaked from the humid air. My business papers always felt soaked too.
Bottomline is I guess these marigolds are developed for that type of hot, humid weather. They are developed in Souteast Asia where is can be ultra hot, sticky, humid. Many marigolds suffer heat stress and stop blooming when it gets too hot and humid.
Bob

Here is a link that might be useful: Nice marigold summary

Thanks everyone,
I have several emails and have enough testers from Texas (my home state). I need to get additional testers from the deep south. If testers drop out as we move forward I will repost again.
I appreciate your offers to help with this project.
Thanks again,
Bob
Ps. Debbie I will email you. Thanks.

That's humid Bob. I had an experience like that when my parents took me to South America (Rio, Sao Paulo). I was also in the the Bahamas but it wasn't all that humid in general, or we were there at the right time. I have never been further into Asia than Macau,China. It wasn't anything like Southeast Asia,as far as weather goes, I'm sure. I can tell you women in Brazil run about naked because it's too humid to dress and to prove they have nothing of value (robbery prevention)LOL!
I don't understand why they'd drag a flower that's native to humid South America all the way to Southeast Asia. It seems like they'd test chrysanthemums.

Tagetes [1] is a genus of 56 species [2] of annual and perennial mostly herbaceous plants in the sunflower family (Asteraceae or Compositae). They are native to the New World (North and South America) but have become naturalized around the world, and is considered a noxious invasive plant in many localities.

pjtexgirl, I guess most everywhere in the world has almost perfect weather sometime in the year. Going to the beach in north Florida is fun except when it is too cold in the late fall, winter and early spring or too hot in late spring, summer and early fall. :-)
On marigolds, it would be nice if they were invasive in my garden.
Bob

Copper Canyon Daisy Tagetes lemmonii are marigolds that will take over and be invasive in Zone 9. It's not exactly the showy hybrid but it's a marigold. Mine survived 3 days around 10 degrees here in Burleson.

Bob I still haven't received your email yet

Thanks,
Debbie

Hi Debbie,
I just sent another copy of the email I sent you on April 30 at around 10 AM. I sure would like to know if it went in your spam folder. Could you check your Spam folder?

I have been off my computer for two days working on resodding part of my yard. So I didn't see this post until this morning. But hopefully you get the copy I just sent. The messages that you post here do show up in my email, so I do get your messages.
Thanks,
Bob