Amaranth: 35 species and varieties with a description, planting and care in the open field with a photo

People grow everything that is beautiful and also useful. Amaranth is one of these plants. In an unchanged form - weed grass, called shiritsa thrown back. Each gardener at least once met the so-called "soldiers" on the plot, this is nothing but amaranth. Today, breeders have bred just a great many varieties and types of amaranth. With their beauty and unusualness, they are eye-catching, and besides, this plant is useful and fruitfully used in cooking. What is this unique and what species are known today.

Amaranth varietal variety

In the world flora, common amaranth is represented by more than sixty species. There are annual and perennial crops that are resistant to even the most severe frosts and resistant to any pest. Growing a plant is simple and not troublesome. With such a great variety of varieties and species, you can get confused and buy fodder or vegetable, instead of decorative. Which varieties are most popular and in demand and in what capacity.

Amaranth tailed

Representative of this species is a rather powerful herbaceous plant, reaching a height of 1.5 m or more. It has an upright thick stem and large leaves, slightly hanging down to the ground. The leaves are often purple tint, rarely green. The root system is pivotal, with a long central root that goes 50-70 cm deep. Such roots are given to withstand a huge bush and prevent it from breaking under its own weight and in bad weather.

Amaranth caudate at the beginning of summer releases a peduncle resembling a long cord or tail, for which it is called caudate. Inflorescences are densely collected small flowers strung on a long pedicel. The length of one cord sometimes reaches half a meter, or even more. Depending on the cultivar, they have a different color.

The most common varieties of the tailed representative are as follows.

Rothschwantz

The plant is upright, up to 70 cm high. A pair of bushes occupies a fairly large space. The leaves are light green with whitish, distinct veins, corrugated to the touch. Inflorescences are collected in a broom. In one inflorescence, up to 50 individual cords up to 30 cm long are observed. The color palette of the panicle is usually red, burgundy, and at the base of a more saturated color.

Important! Separate rope-inflorescences are able to hang down to the very ground and even lie on it.

Grunschwartz

By its botanical characteristics, it resembles the Rotschwanz variety, but has bright green inflorescences. The duo will perfectly fit into the decoration of any flower bed, as they are almost the same height and diameter. These ponytails or flagella are a favorite material for florists to make winter compositions from dried flowers.

Amaranth Green Tails

Tall plant, up to 80 cm. A rare variety of green amaranth. All parts are green: leaves, inflorescences, flowers, stem. But it is beautiful in that the length of the hanging panicles or its individual elements reaches 80 cm. It looks great as an independent planting or as a decoration for an artificial wattle fence or as a hedge. Powerful bushes will not allow any wind to get into the garden.

Crimson beads

Meter stems of this variety have a red, almost crimson color, like inflorescences, which looks spectacular framed by green leaves. The bush is able to grow strongly to the sides, so it is planted in the flower bed in the singular.

The inflorescences hang down to a length of 1 m. They are beautiful in fresh cut and can decorate any winter arrangement for floor vases.

Avalanche

Beautiful long purple tails can be observed from early summer to late autumn. Of interest are individual inflorescences, which are long threads with bunched flowers, strung on a pedicel like beads. Variety Lavina loves space and abundance of light.

Green Torch

An annual herbaceous plant up to 40 cm high. It has green, egg-shaped leaves and an upright powerful stem. Heat-loving amaranth is poorly resistant to low temperatures. Flowering can be observed from June until frost, when it dies.

Inflorescences or tails grow up, and do not hang down, as is customary for tailed amaranth. Panicles are represented by separate thickened peduncles. Color bright green.

Dreadlocks

This variety of amaranth is perhaps the most bizarre. It can be classified as panicled and tailed. The panicle inflorescence is of interest. Its individual flagella resemble dreadlocks, an African hairstyle. On a thin pedicel, balls of small burgundy flowers seem to be strung. And in combination with bright greenery, the plant will not leave any grower on the sidelines.

Amaranth tricolor and two colors

Special types of annual amaranth are two- and three-color. These varieties are valued by gardeners not for flowering, like the previous representative, but for the interesting color of the leaves, which combines two or more contrasting colors at once. Moreover, different shades prevail immediately on one root.

The leaves are elongated, can be wavy, are red, yellow and green at the same time. These varieties are usually classified as medium height varieties reaching 60-70 cm, but there are specimens with a height of 1.5 m.

Illumination

The most attractive variety is Illumination (Illumination). He is perhaps the most favorite among flower growers. Decorativeness is created by the play of colors on one leaf. Red, yellow, green shades of one leaf blade, as if someone had spilled three bottles of paint at once.

Height does not exceed 70 cm, the shape is pyramidal, that is, expanded at the base and narrowed upward. Multi-colored leaves-petals appear on young shoots. In early summer, they are less bright, and by autumn their pigment intensifies, and they take on an almost red-orange hue.

Glamorous Glitter

The height of the amaranth is not more than half a meter. The plant has a compact bush, consisting of large leaves. The lower leaves are dark green with a burgundy border. The top of the amaranth is painted in bright burgundy tones without greenery, which makes the flower look elegant and solemn.

Molten Fire

Two-color amaranth with a decent size. The height of the bush is up to 80 cm. The lower part of the foliage is brown, closer to chocolate, and this composition is crowned with scarlet leaves. The leaves at the top are long and slightly wavy.

Early Splender

Amaranth Early Splender belongs to the genus of annuals. The thickened stems create a bush more than 1 m high. The two-tone color plays with tones of burgundy and crimson, which are used to color the upper leaves, rather long, wriggling like snakes. The lower rows of foliage are maroon with a bronze sheen.

Used in the landscape as a center plant in any flower bed or in combination with petunias. Dense foliage is observed to the very ground.

Aurora

Bicolor Aurora grows up to 1.2 m in height.The composition of yellow and green leaves will fit perfectly into any flower garden. The leaves are oblong, slightly wavy. The lower foliage is dark green, but the upper foliage is significantly different and presents a delicate sunny bouquet of yellow or cream tones. Looks great paired with Early Splender or Molten Fire.

Splendance Perfect

Pyramidal amaranth 1.2 m high. This representative of the tricolor requires freedom to show itself in all its glory. Valued in amaranth leaves, narrow on long petioles. The lower layer of foliage is dark green with black spots, the top is presented in the form of a cluster of variegated, yellow-red leaves. The foliage looks elegant until late autumn.

Molten Fire

Original cultivar with burgundy colored under layers, then fades to purple at the top. The outermost leaves are not completely painted in light colors, but only half.

Bicolor

Amaranth height is slightly more than 80 cm, has a pyramidal structure. The foliage is green below, duller than it goes to the top. At the crown, a cluster of bright scarlet elongated, wavy leaves predominates. Looks most elegant in sunny areas.

Amaranth paniculata

People call this variety of amaranth crimson. It is significantly different from its counterparts: tailed and multi-colored amaranth. It has an upright stem with lots of side shoots, which takes up a lot of space in the garden.

The inflorescence is presented in the form of a panicle, but erect. Only in some varieties, the panicle droops down due to its severity. Amaranth grows from 35 cm to 150 cm. Depending on this, low, medium and tall plants are distinguished.

Varieties of panicled amaranth.

Oeshberg

Tall panicled amaranth of German selection, reaching a height of 1 m. The bush is simply huge, so it does not look in combination with other varieties, it is better to grow as a single decoration. The leaves are dark green, erect panicles with densely stuffed peduncles can be seen through them. The flowers are almost burgundy, when the light becomes more saturated.

Gemini

Amaranth of this variety comes with green and burgundy inflorescences. Interesting in the shape of the peduncle. In the panicle itself, the central peduncle stands out significantly against the background of the lateral ones, reaches 30-40 cm, while the lateral ones are 5-10 cm. Small flowers are very closely spaced on the peduncles. The diameter of the central branch is up to 7 cm.

Panicle erect, on a high, up to 80 cm, bush. The leaves are large green. The bush has a thickened stem to support a fairly branchy plant.

Bronze

Giant plant, up to 2 m. Upright thick stem densely endowed with large green leaves. Through them, chic panicles rise outward. Flowering is long, from June to frost. A chic sight when an ear peeks out from under the snow.

We love flower growers in group flower beds, as well as in the cut. It is enough to add a couple of other flowers, and the bouquet is ready. The plant is unpretentious in care, loves space and abundance of light, which makes it seem golden.

Openwork

This variety of panicled amaranth is similar to the Bronze variety. It has an upright stem up to 1.2 m in height, strong lateral shoots, green leaves and bronze-colored panicle inflorescences.

Red Cathedral

High amaranth, reaching more than 1.2 m. The leaves are bright green, against which beautiful burgundy paniculate inflorescences grow upwards. This variety has a long flowering period. Grown by seeds in the ground or through seedlings.

Bronze Age

The Bronze Age variety outwardly resembles Openwork and Bronze, but the color palette of the panicle is several other shades. In fact, it is bronze, and in sunlight it becomes more saturated in color.

Red Torch

Amaranth height 40 cm. The trunk is quite thick with powerful side branches. The inflorescence is collected in the center and is the end of the top. Panicle has a burgundy color. Amaranth is thermophilic, does not tolerate even small frosts. Fits beautifully in flowerbeds with undersized flowers.

Fodder amaranth

Tall, strong splendor, abundance of green mass, huge inflorescences, such a feature cannot be missed by livestock breeders. Amaranths are grown for the preparation of poultry feed mixtures and for livestock silage. The harvest of fodder amaranth will always be born, and the minimum financial costs make this plant in demand in animal husbandry.Varieties bred today are characterized by unpretentious care and high yields.

Kinelsky 254

This variety is a product of the Konstantinov Povolzhsky NIISS. The growing season lasts 100 days. Plant height up to 1.6 m. It has an inflorescence-panicle up to 60 cm long. The variety is drought and frost resistant. Shoots are slightly leafy. The yield of green mass is up to 30 tons per hectare in dry weather and up to 70 tons in favorable conditions. The seeds are used to make medicinal oil.

Giant

Forage variety included in the State Register of the Russian Federation. The bush has dark green foliage and a yellow, rarely red panicle inflorescence. The dimensions of the panicle can be described as follows, it does not fit into both hands, the length of the inflorescence is up to 42 cm. The bushiness and juiciness of the aerial part is plentiful, which is used in animal husbandry to prepare silage for livestock feed. The yield of Giant amaranth is 15-20 t/ha.Plant height reaches almost 2 m.

Lera

Fodder amaranth. Height reaches 2.2 m. Maturation is average, up to 105 days. The stem and leaves are green, the latter have red veins, a red panicle, the length of which is up to 54 cm. It is used for making silage, as the green mass is juicy and nutritious, enriched with protein necessary for cattle.

Kharkiv-1

This variety is intended not only for livestock and poultry feed, but also for medicinal purposes and as a grain. The vegetation period is 110 days. Productivity up to 20 t/ha. Feed pellets, grass meal and cake are prepared from the leaves. Plant more than 2 m, with a bright green panicle. The green mass of amaranth is plentiful and juicy. The bush has a large number of shoots, which makes it necessary to plant at a distance of 70 cm from each other.

Aztec

Forage amaranth variety predominantly red, from foliage and stems to inflorescence.The ripening period is 110 days. One and a half meter amaranth has panicle inflorescences, reaching a length of 50 cm. It has a large yield of greens for food and the content of feed units in 1 kg of dry matter.

Kizlyarets

Green amaranth variety suitable for fodder purposes. Starting from the sixtieth day of the growing season, you can start harvesting for silage. The stem reaches a height of 1.6 m, this is not the limit, but is valued not for growth, but for the presence of rich green mass. Unpretentious in care, resistant to diseases and pests. Productivity from 1 hectare - up to 50 tons.

Cherry jam

Known as fodder, medicinal and food amaranth. Low-growing (75 cm) herbaceous plant, under favorable growing conditions can be perennial. It has long drooping cherry-colored panicle inflorescences and green leaves. Yield 40 t/ha.

Amaranth dark (sad)

The height of the plant is up to 1.5 m. The bush is slightly branched, the leaves are oblong, lanceolate, purple or purple-green. The inflorescence grows vertically, resembles an ear or panicle of burgundy, almost black color.

A variety with blood-colored drooping inflorescences is known. The most popular varieties are: Pigmy Torch, Green Tamb. These are undersized varieties of sad amaranth, their height is from 40 to 60 cm. They are used for bouquet cutting.

White amaranth - white amaranth

Short shrub growing up to half a meter. It got its name because of the light tones of green, almost white color of the leaves and stems. Interesting inflorescences in the form of separate bundles, very long and white. Several flagella fold into heavy clusters, which hang down to the ground under their weight. It is actively cultivated in European countries, from where it is considered a native.

Red amaranth - Amaranthus Red

Truly, justifies its second name - "red leaf". The plant is completely red, only the stem and leaves of one shade, but the inflorescences of another. Amaranth grows up to 2 m. The stem is thick, you can’t just break it without attracting strength. It is given to the plant as a support, as the bush is powerful and strongly leafy.

The inflorescence is presented as a large panicle of dark scarlet, almost bloody color. The plant is unpretentious, it can grow on any soil. And interestingly, some farms grow not for decoration and for livestock feed, but to protect soil from water and wind erosion.

Amaranth upturned or spiked - Amaranthus retroflexus

It's nothing but garden "soldiers" treated like weeds. It grows up to 1.5 m, has many side shoots. The root system is pink. It grows strongly in different directions, preventing the growth of grass and cultivated plants.

Color - an ear of small green flowers with a predominance of gray or yellow. As the ear matures, it becomes prickly. The seed material is quite small, reminiscent of black beads.

Types of ornamental amaranths

All the varieties of amaranth presented above are undoubtedly beautiful and will decorate any flower bed, but other varieties have been bred by breeders for decorative purposes.

Cherry velvet

Short red amaranth, from the lower leaves to the top. Height is 60 cm, scattered spike inflorescences, openwork lace. Some plants are almost purple in color. It can be said that Red Velvet is a cultivated plant, as it loves loose and fertile soils and a lot of light. Freezes at low frosts.

Vegetable amaranth

This is rather a group of amaranths, which are used not only to decorate the landscape, but also for food.Edible are inflorescences and leaves, which are used in cooking, folk medicine. The rich composition of vitamins and minerals, protein, this is what distinguishes vegetable varieties from decorative ones. Today, varieties are considered famous: Valentina, Krepysh, White Leaf and Opopeo.

Indoor amaranth

Any of the presented amaranths can be grown at home. Of course, they will be miniatures of their counterparts in the open field. Usually, low-growing varieties are used for indoor maintenance: Roter Dam, Roter Paris, Zwegfakel, Grunefakel and Hot Biscuit. Keeping conditions are similar to indoor plants.

How to plant and grow a flower in the garden

Difficulties arise at first. Young seedlings grow slowly. But it is enough to provide an abundance of sun, warmth and the right humidity, the plant is quickly gaining momentum. And now a small sprout turns into a chic bush-tree.

Agricultural technology also does not take much effort and time, since in the open field amaranth is unpretentious, drought-resistant and only occasionally requires attention.

Methods and technology of planting

You should not linger on the choice of soil, since many types of ornamental amaranths, usually tall tailed, paniculate and spike-shaped, can grow on any land: clay, sand and even gravel.

There are only two ways of planting: seeds and through seedlings. Each has its own nuances, but does not present any particular difficulties.

Seeds

If in the previous year amaranth was already grown on the site, then most likely next season shoots will sprout in this place, since the seeds have excellent germination and it costs nothing to overwinter. Such sprouts can be transplanted to the right place and provide them with proper care.

If amaranth is planted for the first time, then you need to stock up on seeds in advance and get to work. Sowing begins in May, when the soil has warmed up, and constantly warm day and night temperatures of up to +6 degrees have been established on the street.

A place is chosen where a huge bush or a miniature bicolor will show off in the future. Small holes are made in the soil, up to about 1-2 cm deep, the seeds are carefully shed and laid out.

The planting scheme depends on the purpose of cultivation. If decoration is needed, then it is better to provide space for future seedlings and plant them at a distance of 70-90 cm from each other, if for culinary purposes it is better to thicken the plantings. In this case, the amaranth will grow green and bloom late.

Amaranth has rather small seeds, so they are mixed with sand when sowing, but this technique will not allow you to get rare seedlings, so it will be better to thin them out. Seedlings from seeds sown outdoors will appear in a week.

Seedlings

The seedlings are planted in March - mid-April. Any loose soil is poured into an ordinary seedling box, slightly compacting it. Seed material is distributed from above. Seeds are sprinkled with a thin layer of earth. Cover with film or glass and clean in a dark and warm place.

When the seeds hatch out, the box is placed on the windowsill, and the shelter is removed. Usually the first greens appear on the 7-12th day. When the first pair of leaves appears, the seedlings are dived and planted in separate containers. For them, it is enough to provide light and regular watering. From mid-May, the pots are put outside for hardening and getting used to the sun's rays. And at the end of May they plant them in a permanent place.

Before planting, mineral fertilizers are applied to the soil: 20 g of nitroammophoska per 1 square meter.

How to care for a crop

It is necessary to monitor the condition of seedlings in the first months, so you need to visit the country house more often. Due to slow growth, seedlings can be oppressed by weeds. Timely weeding will provide them with freedom, light and oxygen.

Care in the open field consists in the following agricultural practices:

1. At the beginning of summer, amaranth beds should be mulched to retain moisture in the soil. Mowed and chopped grass is used as mulch.
2. Young amaranths need sufficient moisture, so they are watered several times a week in dry weather. Reduce watering after the plant has taken root.
3. In the first month, plants can be fed with mullein infusion in a ratio of 1 to 5 or wood ash. Amaranth is responsive to green manure. Feeding should be done in the morning, on moist soil.
4. From the second month, amaranth begins to grow. Now he does not need weeding, because under his crown the weeds are oppressed, but watering still needs to be continued and the soil should not dry out.

When the plant reaches a height of 25-30 cm, it is removed for greenery. Otherwise, the amaranth remains in the garden for decoration.

Methods of reproduction

All types of amaranth are reproduced from seeds. They start collecting seeds in the fall, when the lower leaves crumble, and the panicle begins to dry out slightly. It is important not to miss the moment, as the seeds quickly fall to the ground. It is better to cut off an unripe panicle and determine for ripening in a ventilated room.

After a few days, rub the inflorescences with your hands over a white cloth or paper, and then pour the seeds into a small storage container. Amaranth is beautiful, unpretentious, huge, magnificent, useful, and these are not all the advantages.

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