Botanical Name: Amaranthus tricolour
Some other names: Joseph’s coat, Chinese spinach, Summer spinach
How to grow it:
Amaranth is an annual (sometimes short-lived perennial) that forms a bushy, upright clump about 0.5–1 m tall, with boldly coloured foliage in reds, greens and yellows Native to tropical regions of the Americas, it’s now widely grown across tropical, subtropical and warm temperate areas.
In nature, it thrives in open, moist soils on river plains and roadsides in Central and South America, Asia, and Africa .
Give it full sun and well-drained fertile soil — it flourishes when kept evenly moist but doesn’t like dry or waterlogged spots. Best time to plant is spring, once the risk of frost has passed. It germinates quickly, and you can expect edible leaves in 4–6 weeks.
Propagation is straightforward: direct-sow seeds into the garden; seedlings or cut-backed stems also root easily, making it simple to establish more plants or fill in gaps. If you had it to maturity in the last season, it’ll most likely self-seed readily and you’ll have it coming up al over the place – you can pull out the seedlings, wash and eat them.
Herbal & Nutrient Value:
Like a leafy green superfood, Amaranth brings some serious nutrition. A 100 g serving of cooked leaves can provide over 15–20% of your daily needs for vitamin C, iron, calcium, folate, and more — making it a standout vegetable green . It also packs dietary fibre and antioxidants that support gut health and reduce inflammation.
Herbal traditions use it as a digestive aid and mild diuretic, thanks to its fibre content and antioxidant compounds. While detailed modern studies on Amaranth itself are limited, related species have shown anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial effects in laboratory tests.
Using it in the kitchen:
Amaranth is delicious—mix its tender young leaves and stems into salads, stir-fries, soups or steams. The leaves taste lightly earthy, sometimes with a faint clove-like aroma when cooked, and handle bold flavours beautifully.
Wash well, remove any thick stems, and chop leaves while they’re tender. Steaming or stir-frying for just a couple of minutes preserves the texture and colour. You can also simmer them gently into rice or omelettes.
Simple Recipe ideas:
• Stir-fried greens – toss leaves with garlic, salt and a dash of oil for 2–3 minutes.
• Leafy soup – simmer chopped greens with onion and stock; finish with lime juice.
• Greens & eggs – fold wilted amaranth into scrambled eggs or omelette.
• Pickled greens – blanch leaves, pack in vinegar with garlic and herbs; let sit for a day.
• Green smoothies – add to your smoothie in combination with other leaves
Other Uses
Amaranth isn’t just food and medicine—it brightens up a garden with its colourful foliage and so doubles as an edible ornamental.
From a survival perspective, it’s a dream plant—fast-growing, reliably green, self-seeds readily, edible from early in the season, and it thrives in poor soils. You can harvest it over and over for fresh greens, making it a valuable staple for pantry gardens or resilience-focused growing.
