Hastate Orach
Atriplex hastata

Family: Chenopodiaceae

What it is like

Atriplex hastata is a ANNUAL growing to 0.8 m (2ft 7in). It is not frost tender. It is in flower from July to September. The species is monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and is pollinated by Wind. Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline and saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Height (m): 0.8

Where it is found

Waste or disturbed ground, often near the sea, on sand, shingle and mud above the high-tide mark.

Most of Europe, including Britain, south from Scandanavia to N. Africa, east to Asia.

Conservation Status:

Countries/locations it is found in

How it is used

Food

Rating: 3

Leaves - cooked. Used as a spinach substitute, they have a fairly bland flavour and are often mixed with stronger tasting leaves. Seed - cooked. Ground into a powder and used to thicken soups etc or added to wheat flour and used in making bread. Very fiddly to harvest because the seed is quite small.

Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.

Medicine

Rating: 0

Other

Rating: 2

Dynamic accumulator.

Dynamic accumulator: Plants that gather minerals or nutrients from the soil and store them in a more bioavailable form and in high concentration in their tissues. Used as fertilizer or to improve mulch.

How it is grown

Requires a position in full sun in any well-drained but not too fertile soil. Tolerates saline and very alkaline soils. A polymorphic species. This species is a poor companion for potatoes, inhibiting their growth when growing close to them.

Propagating it: Seed - sow April/May in situ. Germination is usually rapid.

Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;

Habit: Annual

Hardiness: 0-0

Growth:

Soil: Light (sandy), medium

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Dry, moist

Things to keep in mind

No member of this genus contains any toxins, all have more or less edible leaves. However, if grown with artificial fertilizers, they may concentrate harmful amounts of nitrates in their leaves.

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

A. deltoidea.