Amaranthus graecizans | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Caryophyllales |
Family: | Amaranthaceae |
Genus: | Amaranthus |
Species: | A. graecizans |
Binomial name | |
Amaranthus graecizans | |
Subspecies [1] | |
Synonyms | |
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Amaranthus graecizans, the Mediterranean amaranth [2] or short-tepalled pigweed, [3] is an annual species in the botanical family Amaranthaceae. It is native to Africa, southern Europe, East Asia to India and Central Asia. [4] It is naturalized in North America. More general common names include tumbleweed and pigweed. [5]
Amaranthus graecizans is an annual herb that grows up to 50 centimetres (20 inches) tall. Stems are branched from base, glabrous or covered with crisped hairs. The flowers are unisexual and are yellow with round black seeds that are 1–1.25 mm. [6]
Amaranthus graecizans grows in warm temperate zones where it can be found at elevations up to 2,400 metres (7,900 feet). [7] It grows rapidly after rain and can be found on disturbed ground in the vicinity of human and livestock settlements as well as seasonally flooded sandy flats. [8]
The edible leaves are used as a vegetable throughout Africa and the Middle East. [9] It can be eaten raw, but was more often cooked, or added to sauces and stews. A common way to cook Amaranthus graecizans was to cook it in buttermilk, or to squeeze fresh lime-juice over it. [10] The seeds are starchy and can also be eaten [11]
No members of this genus are known to be poisonous, but when grown on nitrogen-rich soils they are known to concentrate nitrates in the leaves.[ citation needed ] This is especially noticeable on land where nitrate fertilizer is used.[ citation needed ]
Amaranthus blitum, commonly called purple amaranth or Guernsey pigweed, is an annual plant species in the economically important plant family Amaranthaceae.
Amaranthus retroflexus is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae with several common names, including red-root amaranth, redroot pigweed, red-rooted pigweed, common amaranth, pigweed amaranth, and common tumbleweed.
Amaranthus thunbergii, commonly known as Thunberg's amaranthus or Thunberg's pigweed, is found in Africa.
Amaranthus cruentus is a flowering plant species that is native from Central Mexico to Nicaragua. It yields a nutritious staple amaranth grain, being one of three Amaranthus species cultivated as a grain source, the other two being Amaranthus hypochondriacus and Amaranthus caudatus. It has several common names, including blood amaranth, red amaranth, purple amaranth, prince's feather, and Mexican grain amaranth.
Grewia villosa is a shrub, often scrambling and hardly exceeding 4 m in height. Leaves are fairly large, serrated and heart-shaped. It grows naturally, mainly in dry habitats. It is common in most of the semi-arid parts of Eastern Africa but may now be rare in parts of its natural distribution. It can be seen in Ein Gedi oasis in Israel, and in South Africa, where it is common. Its ripe copper-coloured fruits are eaten in East Africa.
Commiphora gileadensis, the Arabian balsam tree, is a shrub species in the genus Commiphora growing in Saudi Arabia, Yemen, southern Oman, Sudan and in southeast Egypt where it may have been introduced. Other common names for the plant include balm of Gilead and Mecca myrrh, but this is due to historical confusion between several plants and the historically important expensive perfumes and drugs obtained from them.
Kleinia is a genus of flowering plants in the sunflower family. Kleinia contains around 50 species and is distributed from Morocco and the Canary Islands, throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, South Asia and Indochina. It is closely related to the genus Senecio but is distinguished primarily by having succulent stems or leaves.
Gymnosporia dhofarensis is a species of plant in the family Celastraceae and is found in Oman and Yemen. It is an intricately branched spiny shrub or small tree with its leaves arranged alternately or clustered on short shoots. The flowers have white or cream petals and the fruit are purple or red. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Ruttya fruticosa, also known as jammy mouth or jêmbekkie, is a shrub which is native to Africa. It can be found in South Somalia to Tanzania and in the woodlands of Dhofar, Oman. The name Ruttya was named in honour of Dr John Rutty and fruticosa means shrubby and refers to the habit of the plant.
Euphorbia balsamifera is a flowering plant in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae. It is distributed in the Canary Islands and the western Sahara. It is the vegetable symbol of the island of Lanzarote. Euphorbia adenensis has been treated as a subspecies of this species.
Plumbago zeylanica, commonly known as Ceylon leadwort, doctorbush or wild leadwort, is a species of plumbago with a pantropical distribution. Carl Linnaeus described the paleotropical P. zeylanica and Neotropical P. scandens as separate species, but they are currently considered synonymous.
The Oman Botanic Garden is a development of the Diwan of Royal Court in Oman, with plants, landscapes, and cultural traditions native to Oman. The gardens are located on 423 hectares in Al Khoud, on the campus of Sultan Qaboos University. The garden's collection includes approximately 1,200 species of plants, displayed in various habitats such as deserts, monsoon cloud forests, and wadis. The garden has several educational exhibits that teach visitors about Oman's plants and how they are utilised.
Commiphora kua, sometimes known as Abyssinian myrrh or the Yemen myrrh, is a plant native to northeast Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, including Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Zambia, Malawi, Oman and Yemen. It was first described as Balsamodendrum kua in 1847, and has many botanical synonyms. It can be recognised by its simple, serrate leaves and by the pseudo aril, covering the seed, which has four almost linear arm-like lobes.
Ficus vasta, is a fig plant found in Ethiopia and Yemen. The tree is a species of sycamore-fig.
Lycium shawii, desert thorn or Arabian boxthorn is a species of thorny shrub adapted to desert environments, and can be found throughout the Arabian Peninsula, and some places in Africa. The thin leaved, rigid bush grows up to 3 metres high, with a lot of branches and alternating spines that vary in size, and grow along the branches and on their tips. The leaves narrow towards their base. It produces small whitish-pink or purple flowers from September until April, and red pea-sized seedy berries that are edible. Habitats include gravel plains and foothills up to 4,000 ft (1,200 m), as well as wadis. Plants often growing nearby include Acacia tortilis and Prosopis cineraria.
Sterculia africana or African star-chestnut is a deciduous tree, belonging to the genus Sterculia and the family Malvaceae. The species is sometimes called the "mopopaja tree". It is distributed throughout Northeast Africa to Arabia.
Withania qaraitica is a shrubby and perennial herb up to one metre tall with bright orange-red seeds patterned with honeycomb-like markings, pale yellowish brown. It has only been found in Dhofar, but may occur in wet woodlands over the border in south Yemen. It is closely related to two species, Withania adunenis and W. riebeckii. Withania qaraitica occurs commonly in the wet woodlands however can be found around settlements where they have frequently been transplanted.
Senna holosericea is a perennial herb with yellow flowers that is native to the Arabian Peninsula, Chad, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, India, Pakistan, Socotra, Somalia and Sudan.
Cyphostemma ternatum is a perennial climbing herb that grows up to 2m. It is edible and distributed throughout Northeast Africa to South Arabia. ternatum in Latin means "arranged in threes" and alludes to the arrangement of the leaves.
Remusatia vivipara also called hitchhiker elephant ear is a perennial herb growing up to 50 cm tall in the genus Remusatia. It is widespread throughout the world, growing in temperate climates.