Mystery Plant

in homesteading •  7 years ago 

I wanted to grow some tall grasses this year so I requested some giant purple millet on a seed trading site. I planted the seeds, and carefully babied the two tiny plants that emerged. The one that survived did not have the grasslike leaves that I was expecting from millet, but I was curious as the round leaves did have a reddish hue.
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The six foot tall plant turned out to be amaranth. The thick red flower stalks do resemble the millet stems I used to buy for my pet birds many years ago, so perhaps that is where the confusion arose in the name.

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The seeds of different varieties of amaranth are used for both food and dye. I don't know which variety I have, but I plan to save some seeds and make amaranth a regular addition to the homestead.

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I believe this is purple amaranth. We grew it a few years ago, but it didn't get this big for us. Nice plant!
BTW, the leaves on this are edible, like spinach

Good to know! I imagine they taste better when young, perhaps before flowering? I plan to grow some again next year, but in a different spot as it is overtowering my small flower garden!

Yes, I believe the young leaves are the best.

I love growing amaranth! I store it as a grain and cook with it frequently as I would quinoa and also as supplemental feed for the birds in the winter. I get my seeds from Baker's Creek. You'll only have t do it once, as it puts out tremendous seed heads. Here's the link. http://www.rareseeds.com/search/?keyword=amarant

So far I have tried five varieties. My least favorite is the Golden. While beautiful, the leaves were more on the bitter side and the seed heads are harder to tell when to harvest.

This is the first time for me, but not the last! Interesting that you use it as quinoa. I knew about the young leaves tasting like spinach, but knowing that the seed can be eaten makes it even more appealing. I imagine the birds will let me know when its harvest time!

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  ·  7 years ago (edited)

Thanks for reading and upvoting!

So lovely to the eyes!

Thank you...I agree.

my pleasure!

Much prettier than the Palmer amaranth (pigweed) we have in Oklahoma.

Keep a good eye on it. Amaranth can become problematic if left unmanaged.

Will do, thanks for the head's up!

Wow...tks for sharing @anise nice post...

My pleasure!

Do find time to also check my blog posts too...

I will take a peek!

Awesome...expecting your comments too 😎

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Beautiful plant!

I agree--a pleasant surprise!