Biological Name:
Amaranthus blitoides (Prostrate-Amaranth)
Natural Habitat:
Prostrate-Amaranth: This plant is native to North and South America and grows in a variety of habitats, including fields, meadows, and along roadsides.
Description:
Prostrate-Amaranth is an annual weed native to North America. It is a member of the amaranth family and is easily identified by its small pink or white flowers and prostrate growth habit. The plant has a low-growing habit and produces small oval-shaped seeds.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q: Can you eat prostrate pigweed?
A: The leaves of pigweed are also incredibly nutritious. They’re high in vitamins A and C and folate, as well as calcium. In Jamaica, pigweed is known as callaloo and is a culinary staple.
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Q: Is pigweed poisonous to humans?
A: Yes, the weeds in the garden we call pigweed, including prostrate pigweed, from the amaranth family, are edible. Every part of the plant can be eaten, but the young leaves and growing tips on older plants are the tastiest and most tender. The seeds are nutritious, edible, and are not difficult to harvest.
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Q: Why do they call it pigweed?
A: Their common name, pigweed, may have comes from its use as fodder for pigs. Pigweed plants are commonly considered to be weeds by farmers and gardeners because they thrive in disturbed soils.
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Q: What part of pigweed is poisonous?
A: Pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus) is a common annual weed found throughout the United States. The weed can grow three to four feet; the flowers are green and prickly and the plant has oval shaped leaves. The pigweed’s leaves, roots and stems are toxic.
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Q: Is pigweed same as quinoa?
A: Quinoa or Chenopodium quinoa, also known as Goosefoot, Pigweed, or Inca wheat, is an erect annual plant of up to 3 m in height that is widely cultivated in Chile and Peru as a grain crop. It is drought resistant when fully established. The taproot is branched.
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Q: How do you prepare pigweed for eating?
A: Place the pigweed in a medium saucepan on low heat. Cover with a lid and cook for a couple of minutes until wilted. Add a tablespoon of water if you wish to help it steam. Remove from heat and drain in a colander.
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Q: Should I pull pigweed?
A: Use safe removal techniques. If you spot pigweed plants that have yet to produce mature seeds, pull them or cut them off just below the soil line. Plants with mature seeds should be bagged before being removed and destroyed. Either burn the plants or bury them under at least a foot of compost.
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Q: What is the difference between amaranth and pigweed?
A: It is also known as Palmer pigweed. Palmer amaranth is related to other pigweeds in our region including redroot, smooth, Powell, and spiny, but unlike these other pigweeds, Palmer amaranth grows faster and is dioecious, meaning that plants are either male or female.
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Q: Why was amaranth outlawed?
A: In the 16th century the Spanish conquistadors banned the plant’s cultivation, fearing that the spiritual connection with it would stymie the establishment of Catholicism on the continent. But the Incas and Mayans continued to grow amaranth.
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Q: What did Native Americans use amaranth for?
A: Several types of amaranth were used as food coloring, imparting a red or pink color to some ceremonial food and drink in Central and North American native foodways. Today, “amaranth†in the food-coloring world refers to the synthetic Red Dye No.
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Q: Can you eat all amaranth?
A: All the many members of the genus Amaranthus are edible, although some are better than others. They have been cultivated in all parts of the world and go under many names. Amaranth can be grown both for the leaves or the grains and are still commonly cultivated as a cereal in parts of Central and South America.
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Q: Is amaranth an invasive plant?
A: Amaranthus palmeri is an annual herbaceous plant that is spreading rapidly beyond its native range in North America. It is considered the most invasive species of the dioecious amaranths and is ranked as one of the most troublesome weeds of various crops in the United States.
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Q: How do you eat amaranth?
A: Toast a tablespoon of amaranth seeds a time in a hot, dry skillet. Continually shake or stir until the seeds pop. Eat them as a snack or use them to top soups, salads, and vegetable dishes. We’ve also heard that popped amaranth can be used to bread tofu or meat but haven’t given it a try yet.
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Q: What is amaranth called in English?
A: Blood amaranthSpecies:A. cruentusBinomial nameAmaranthus cruentus L.Synonyms
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Q: Is the amaranth plant poisonous?
A: Avoid eating too much amaranth from agricultural fields. The leaves (like those of spinach, sorrel and many other greens) also contain oxalic acid, which can be poisonous to livestock or to humans with kidney issues of eaten in large amounts.
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Q: Why is amaranth seed banned in the US?
A: Like all azo dyes, Amaranth was, during the middle of the 20th century, made from coal tar; modern synthetics are more likely to be made from petroleum byproducts. Since 1976 Amaranth dye has been banned in the United States by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a suspected carcinogen.
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Q: What is amaranth plant good for?
A: Amaranth leaves and stems are good economic sources of carotenoids, proteins, including the essential amino acids methionine and lysine, dietary fiber and minerals, such as magnesium, calcium, potassium, copper, phosphorus, zinc, iron, and manganese5–16.
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Q: Can you eat amaranth weeds?
A: The plant is edible from tender stems through leaves, flowers and seeds. The cooked leaves can be used variously as simple green side dishes, in quiches, green Mediterranean-style pies, bruschetta toppings, pestos, soups, and saags.
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Q: Why did the Spanish ban amaranth?
A: In the 16th century the Spanish conquistadors banned the plant’s cultivation, fearing that the spiritual connection with it would stymie the establishment of Catholicism on the continent. But the Incas and Mayans continued to grow amaranth.
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Q: Which amaranth is not edible?
A: Nearly all amaranths are edible, including ‘love-lies-bleeding’ and even the common roadside weedy forms. But those sold as edible varieties are selected for their good seed production and especially tasty leaves.
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Q: What happens if you eat raw amaranth?
A: Amaranth cannot and should not be eaten raw. While there are no known toxicities associated with this grain, cooking it is essential. It has anti-nutrients. Most grains contain anti-nutrients like oxalates and phytates which can bind to vitamins and minerals, leaving them unavailable to your body.
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Q: What are the side effects of amaranth?
A: Side-Effects & Allergies of Amaranth Grain For people with intolerance to lysinuric protein, eating amaranth may cause diarrhoea and stomach pain. Moreover, another side effect of lysine increase body’s calcium absorption, and bring free, damage-causing amount of calcium in the body.
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Q: Can you eat all types of amaranth?
A: All the many members of the genus Amaranthus are edible, although some are better than others. They have been cultivated in all parts of the world and go under many names. Amaranth can be grown both for the leaves or the grains and are still commonly cultivated as a cereal in parts of Central and South America.
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