In Praise of Amaranthus.

Hi roders, I know this thread is quite old but I was searching the forum re: this plant & I thought I might as well revive it rather than start another. I loved the name of the plant & was thinking of growing them but they looked so large that I thought they'd take years to establish, can I ask what time of year you planted them & how long they flowered? Would they be easy enough for a beginner to tackle from seed? Thanks.

 

Hi Freedom
They are so easy to grow,sow in spring in seed compost and plant out in pots or borders in fact they will self seed themselves and overwinter.
They grow up to three feet high,flower in the first year.........A cracking plant............Go for it.

 

That's brilliant! :D Can't wait to grow them, thanks for the reply.

 

Thank you Freedom Spark for resurecting this, and thank you Roders. I admired them at the time and have made a note to give them a try next year. They look very impresssive in a big pot.

 

I have the upright, red amaranthus on my plot - it;s been self-seeding for about 7 years. Unwanted seedlings are easy to hoe off I just leave a few in odd corners for display and for cutting.
Looks wonderfull flowering in the middle of a bed of blue-green leeks!

They can easily be dried and the trailing caudatus remains flexible when dry

 

The red variety looks beautiful contrasted with the other colour roders has grown, anyone know what the other colour/variety is called?

 

Its called Amaranthus caudatus var viridis (=green). You can get the seeds from Chilterns. http://www.chilternseeds.co.uk/chilternseeds/211/index/

 

I got my seeds delivered from Chilterns today, I'm tempted to start a few because they are tiny & there are lots, is it still slightly too early or would they be ok inside?

 

As a result of you resurecting this thread Freedom Spark (again - thank you) I bought a packet from Chilterns and have already sown some.

Strictly speaking it is too early. The problem isn't with germinating them - thats easy if you do them inside the house in the warmth. The problem is what you do with them after they have germinated. It will be too cold for a while to put them outside, and inside they are liable to grow leggy with the combination of high house temperature and low light levels.

Mine are currently in a light box, which temporarily solves all the problems. But I have 24 small containers of seeds in it, and soon there won't be enough room. When potted on I am planning to put them on window sills and rotate the pots daily. Not ideal - but I have done it before and it can work. I also like to use small square pots - you can cram more onto a window sill that way.

So I would say have a go, but I would suggest you only sow a few.They are big plants so you don't need many, and if you leave some in the packet you can have another go later. When I only sow a few seeds I do it in a small pot, it takes up far less space than a seed tray. And the extra depth of the pot tends to act as a resevoir of moisture so it doesn't dry out so quickly.

 

Just seen these photos - beautiful!

 

Would it be too cold to put them in an unheated greenhouse after germination? I didn't think of the problem of them getting leggy, I've just started petunias, nasturtiums and some red hot pokers on the window sill and don't have a light box. I think I'll start a few in pots and see how it goes & then sow some more in March, I'm growing both colours that were in Roders' fantastic photos, I think they look great together!

 

I grow those too and i just love them in a garden.

 

Freedon. The real answer is that I don't really know about putting them in an unheated greenhouse.

They are a native of India, and my first thought is that they are not very hardy. Though I have had a Google and seen them described as both half-hardy and hardy.

Personally I would err on the side of caution. If you have got several plants it might be worth putting some in the greenhouse, but I would keep one or two back in the house, just in case. Consider it as an opportunity to learn. :D

The problem with some tender annuals, such as Cosmos, Cleome and Tithonia is that they don't just need to be protected from frost. If they experience a cold spell which could be above freezing, there is a danger that they can sulk, and never really recover from it. Christopher Lloyd (Great Dixter) wrote about this, and I have certainly experienced it. Christo Lloyd used to recommend sowing ordinary seeds on 1st March, but leaving tender annuals till 1st May, to avoid this danger.

Now I don't know whether Amaranthus would be classed alongside these others. However if you still have some seed left, you can always sow some later as well. Amaranthus is a cereal, used for food in many parts of the world, and is said to be a quick grower.

Gardening is all about experimenting. So go for it, try the different options, but keep a bit of seed back in case of disaster. That's what I am going to do with my Amaranthus seed.

 

Thanks for the advice PeterS, I think it's a pretty good plan, I'll sow about eight seeds, four of each colour and split them between the greenhouse & the house to see what happens, there will be plenty of seeds to spare in case of disaster!

Thanks again.

 

Back again with another question PeterS just wondering if you covered the seeds? Do they need light to germinate or did you put a small amount of compost on them? I don't think I was sent any specific sowing guidelines.Thanks again.