Amaranthus retroflexus seed

LATIN NAME: Amaranthus retroflexus

COMMON NAME: Redroot Amaranth, Pigweed

Redroot amaranth is a plant that most people know as a weed, but it is a far more interesting plant than that suggests. It grows fast and upright, reaching a metre or more in a single season, with broad, softly hairy leaves and a stout, rough stem that is reddish at the base, which gives the plant its name. In summer the stem tops carry dense, bristly spikes of tiny green flowers, each spike packed with hundreds of small blooms that set an enormous number of tiny seeds. It is a vigorous, adaptable plant that grows almost anywhere, from gardens and fields to roadsides and waste ground.

Redroot amaranth belongs to the amaranth family, Amaranthaceae, and it is native to the Americas, though it has now spread around the world. It is one of a group of amaranths whose seeds have been eaten for thousands of years, and in recent decades it has been rediscovered as a highly nutritious grain crop, prized for its protein and its ability to grow in poor conditions.

Positive & Encouraging Seed Germination Guide

Redroot amaranth is one of the easiest and most rewarding seeds to grow. The tiny seeds germinate quickly and reliably in warm soil, usually within a week or two. Sow them in late spring after the soil has warmed, either in rows or scattered over a prepared bed, and cover them very lightly, since they need warmth to get going. Once the seedlings appear they grow fast, and within a few weeks you will have sturdy young plants. They are tolerant of poor soil and dry conditions, so they need little care. If you are growing them for their grain, leave the flowering spikes to mature and dry, then thresh out the tiny seeds. For a gardener or small grower, redroot amaranth is a fascinating and productive crop that turns a patch of ordinary ground into a harvest.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

Redroot amaranth is a real subject of agricultural research. As a close relative of the cultivated grain amaranths, it is studied for its seed chemistry and its potential in plant breeding, where its drought tolerance and its ability to grow on poor soil interest researchers working on food security. The seeds are notably rich in protein and contain a good balance of amino acids, and food scientists have studied the flour for use in gluten-free and nutritious foods. In ecology and weed science, it is one of the most studied weeds in the world, examined for its rapid growth, its enormous seed production and its resistance to herbicides, which has made it a model for understanding how weeds adapt to farming. Between the field, the lab and the breeding program, this humble-looking plant has an extraordinary body of research behind it.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

Ecologically, redroot amaranth is a vigorous opportunist that covers bare ground quickly and feeds a surprising amount of wildlife. Its seed heads feed birds and small mammals, and its dense growth provides shelter for insects and other small creatures.

Its economic value is growing. The seeds are a nutritious food, eaten as a grain, popped like tiny corn, or ground into flour, and they are increasingly used in health foods, gluten-free products and whole-grain blends. The young leaves can be cooked and eaten like spinach, and the plant is also grown as a fast, high-protein animal fodder. For a grower, it is a hardy, low-input crop that produces a genuine harvest on poor ground, and for anyone interested in nutritious and sustainable foods, it is a plant well worth growing.