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Genus:
Amaranthus (pigweeds)
Life
> eukaryotes >
Archaeoplastida >
Chloroplastida
>
Charophyta > Streptophytina > Plantae (land plants)
> Tracheophyta (vascular plants) > Euphyllophyta > Lignophyta (woody plants)
> Spermatophyta (seed plants) > Angiospermae (flowering
plants)
> Core Eudicots
> Order: Caryophyllales > Family:
Amaranthaceae > Subfamily: Amaranthoideae
About 60 species, found worldwide mainly in
warmer regions. Six species are native to southern Africa, 10 species are
naturalised, and a further species is cultivated in the region. Species of Amaranthus are cultivated and the
leaves cooked like spinach ('morogo').
Species native to southern Africa
List from
Plants
of Southern Africa - an Online Checklist (SANBI).
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Amaranthus blitoides
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Amaranthus capensis |
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Amaranthus dinteri |
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Amaranthus praetermissus |
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Amaranthus schinzianus |
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Amaranthus thunbergii
An annual herb native to southern Africa, where is is found throughout the
region and is eaten as a leafy vegetable. |
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Species naturalised in southern Africa
List from
Plants
of Southern Africa - an Online Checklist (SANBI).
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Amaranthus caudatus (Love-lies-bleeding)
Native to South America. See
Wikipedia |
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Amaranthus deflexus |
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Amaranthus dubius |
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Amaranthus graecizans |
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Amaranthus hybridus (Common pigweed, Prince's feather)
Native from eastern USA to South America. Grows as a weed but is also cultivated
for the leaves, which are eaten like Spinach. Amaranthus become poisonous if grown on nutrient
rich soils (e.g. on compost heaps and in heavily fertilised soil) because under
these conditions they accumulate dangerous levels of oxalates. |
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Amaranthus muricatus |
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Amaranthus retroflexus |
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Amaranthus spinosus |
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Amaranthus standleyanus |
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Amaranthus viridis |
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Other species, cultivated in southern Africa
Information from Glen (2002).
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Amaranthus hypochondriacus (Huuhtli, Alegria, Bledo, Rajgira,
Keera)
Native to North America. |
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Publications
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Adamson, R.S. 1936. Notes on the species of Amaranthus
in the Western Cape Province. Journal of South African Botany 2:
191-195.
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Brenan, J.P.M. 1981. The genus Amaranthus
in southern Africa. Journal of South African Botany 47, 3: 451-492.
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Glen, H.F. 2002. Cultivated Plants of
Southern Africa. Jacana, Johannesburg.
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