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Atriplex argentea

Common name:	Silvery Orach	Family:	Chenopodiaceae
Author:	Nutt.	Botanical references:	43, 235
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	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.
Range:	N. America - Manitoba and south to California.
Habitat:	Alkaline flats[43]. Dry or saline soils[235].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	A. argentea ssp. expansa[B,C,CAL,P] A. argentea var. mohavensis[B] A. expansa[B,P] A. expansa var. mohavensis[B,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Silverscale [B], Silverscale Saltbush [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	argentea = silvery;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Caryophyllales. Goosefoot family

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 1m. . The flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and are pollinated by Wind. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline and saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Leaves; Seed.

Leaves - cooked, or boiled with other foods as a flavouring[85, 105, 161, 177]. The tender young leaves can be used as greens[216, 257].
Seed - cooked. It can be ground into a meal and used as a thickener in soups etc, or be mixed with flour when making bread etc[85, 257]. The immature seeds can be eaten together with their surrounding calyx[257].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Analgesic; Poultice; Stings; Stomachic.

The leaves have been used as a fumigant in the treatment of pain[257]. A poultice of the leaves has been applied to spider bites[257]. A cold infusion of the plant has been used to treat sickness caused by drinking bad water, and to purify the water[257].
A poultice of the chewed roots has been applied to sores and rashes[257]. An infusion of the root has been used in the treatment of stomach aches[257].

Other Uses

A cold infusion of the plant has been used to purify water[257].

Cultivation details

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though it should be possible to grow it as a spring-sown annual. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus.
Succeeds in full sun in any well-drained but not too fertile soil[200]. Most species in this genus tolerate saline and very alkaline soils[200].

Propagation

Seed - sow April/May in situ. Germination is usually rapid.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Atriplex argentea ssp. expansa (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for the family Chenopodiaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[43] Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950
A bit dated but good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.

[85] Harrington. H. D. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press 1967 ISBN 0-8623-0343-9
A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[161] Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.
A comprehensive but very terse guide. Not for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[216] Whiting. A. F. Ethnobotany of the Hopi North Arizona Society of Science and Art 1939
A very good guide the the plant uses of the N. American Hopi Indians.

[235] Britton. N. L. Brown. A. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada Dover Publications. New York. 1970 ISBN 0-486-22642-5
Reprint of a 1913 Flora, but still a very useful book.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.