Rough Pigweed, Slim amaranth
Amaranthus hybridus

Family: Amaranthaceae

What it is like

The nutritious mildly flavoured leaves and young seedlings can be eaten raw or cooked and used as a spinach substitute. Seeds are used as a cereal substitute and used in porridges and bread. Other common Name: Smooth Pigweed, Green Amaranth; Slim Amaranth. Spanish: bledo; quelite. French: amarante hybride. Portuguese: caruru-de-folha-larga. Brazil: caruru-branco; caruru-roxo. Germany: Bastard - Amarant; Gruenaehriger. Japan: honagaaogeito. Netherlands: basterdamarant.

Amaranthus hybridus is a ANNUAL growing to 2 m (6ft 7in). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 6 and is 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. The plant is self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil.

Height (m): 2

Where it is found

Of uncertain origin, it grows wild in cultivated fields and waste places.

Tropics. Naturalized in Europe.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed.

Countries/locations it is found in

How it is used

Food

Rating: 4

Leaves and young seedlings - cooked as a spinach, added to soups etc or eaten raw. The nutritious leaves have a mild flavour. Seed - raw or cooked. Used as a cereal substitute, the seed is usually ground into a flour for use in porridges, bread etc. It is rather small, about 1mm in diameter, but is easy to harvest and very nutritious. The seed can be cooked whole, and becomes very gelatinous like this, but it is rather difficult to crush all of the small seeds in the mouth and thus some of the seed will pass right through the digestive system without being assimilated.

Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.

Medicine

Rating: 1

A tea made from the leaves is astringent. It is used in the treatment of intestinal bleeding, diarrhoea, excessive menstruation etc.

Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.

Other

Rating: 1

Yellow and green dyes can be obtained from the whole plant.

Dye: Plants that provide dyes.

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.

Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.

How it is grown

Prefers a well-drained fertile soil in a sunny position. Requires a hot sheltered position if it is to do well. Plants should not be given inorganic fertilizers, see notes above on toxicity. Cultivated as a food crop in India, there are many named forms. This species has the potential, through crossbreeding, of imparting early maturity to the white seeded grain amaranths. Most if not all members of this genus photosynthesize by a more efficient method than most plants. Called the 'C4 carbon-fixation pathway', this process is particularly efficient at high temperatures, in bright sunlight and under dry conditions. In garden design, as well as the above-ground architecture of a plant, root structure considerations help in choosing plants that work together for their optimal soil requirements including nutrients and water. The root pattern is clumping, giving the plant a clumping habit. The predictable growth behaviour makes it easier to maintain without having to apply containment methods.

Propagating it: Seed - sow late spring in situ. An earlier sowing can be made in a greenhouse and the plants put out after the last expected frosts. Germination is usually rapid and good if the soil is warm. A drop in temperature overnight aids germination. Cuttings of growing plants root easily.

Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;

Habit: Annual

Hardiness: 6-12

Growth:

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

No members of this genus are known to be poisonous, but when grown on nitrogen-rich soils they are known to concentrate nitrates in the leaves. This is especially noticeable on land where chemical fertilizers are used. Nitrates are implicated in stomach cancers, blue babies and some other health problems. It is inadvisable, therefore, to eat this plant if it is grown inorganically.

Easily controlled and not particularly competitive it is still considered weedy or invasive in Kentucky, Northeast US and other areas in the United States.

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

A. chlorostachys.