Shadscale, Shadscale saltbush
Atriplex confertifolia
Family: Chenopodiaceae
What it is like
Atriplex confertifolia is an evergreen Shrub growing to 1.8 m (6ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 7. It is in leaf all year, in flower in June, and the seeds ripen in August. The species is dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required). and is pollinated by Wind. The plant is not self-fertile. 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 and can tolerate drought.
Height (m): 1.8
Where it is found
Gravelly to fine-textured soils in greasewood, mat-atriplex, other salt desert shrub, sagebrush, pinyon-juniper, and ponderosa pine communities, 600 - 2200 metres.
Western N. America
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
North America, USA,
How it is used
Food
Rating: 4
Leaves - cooked and used as greens. The water in which the leaves is cooked is used in making corn pudding. Seed - used in piñole or ground into a meal and used as a thickener in making bread or mixed with flour in making bread.
Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.
Medicine
Rating: 1
The plant has been burnt and the smoke inhaled as a treatment for epilepsy. The boiled leaves have been used as a liniment for sore muscles and aches. A poultice of the mashed leaves have been applied to the chest and a decoction of the leaves drunk to treat colds.
Antispasmodic: Relaxes muscular spasms and cramps, calming nervous irritation.
Epilepsy: Used in the treatment of Epilepsy - a disorder in which nerve cell activity in the brain is disturbed, causing seizures.
Poultice: A moist, usually warm or hot, mass of plant material applied to the skin in the treatment of burns etc.
Other
Rating: 0
How it is grown
Requires a light or medium well-drained but not too fertile soil in a sunny position. Tolerates saline and very alkaline soils. Succeeds in a hot dry position. Plants resent root disturbance when they are large. Plants are apt to succumb to winter wet when grown on heavy or rich soils. Shadscale forms hybrids with Atriplex canescens, A. garrettii, A. corrugata, and A. gardneri varieties. It is, however, closely allied to A. parryi and A. spinifera. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.
Propagating it: Seed - sow April/May in a cold frame in a compost of peat and sand. Germinates in 1 - 3 weeks at 13°c. Pot up the seedlings when still small into individual pots, grow on in a greenhouse for the first winter and plant out in late spring or early summer after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Very easy. Pot up as soon as they start to root (about 3 weeks) and plant out in their permanent positions late in the following spring. Cuttings of mature wood of the current season's growth, November/December in a frame. Very easy. Pot up in early spring and plant out in their permanent position in early summer.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Sunny Edge;
Habit: Shrub
Hardiness: 6-9
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. jonesii. Obione confertifolia.