Marigolds are used for Day of the Dead because their strong scent and bright orange color are believed to attract the souls of the dead to the offerings their families have prepared.
The flower is the Mexican marigold, Tagetes erecta, called cempasúchil in Spanish, and in Mexico it is also known as flor de muerto, or flower of the dead. During the celebrations, families clean and decorate graves with the orange blooms and place them on the offerings. Loose petals are also used to lay a pathway for the dead, leading them to those offerings. The custom draws on older traditions: the Aztecs, Mayans, and Toltecs honored the deceased at fixed times of the year with flowers, food, incense, dancing, and music to encourage them to return. Marigolds usually appear alongside the holiday’s other common symbols, skulls and candles, and they remain a routine part of Day of the Dead altars in the United States as well as in Mexico and other Latin American countries.
Source: Smithsonian Gardens, “Celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month with SG”
Image: Grave decorated with marigolds for Day of the Dead, photo by Bernardo T P, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.