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Chenopodium berlandieri
Species of edible flowering plant / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Chenopodium berlandieri, also known by the common names pitseed goosefoot,[1] lamb's quarters (or lambsquarters), and huauzontle (Nahuatl) is an annual herbaceous plant in the family Amaranthaceae.
Chenopodium berlandieri | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Caryophyllales |
Family: | Amaranthaceae |
Genus: | Chenopodium |
Species: | C. berlandieri |
Binomial name | |
Chenopodium berlandieri | |
The species is widespread in North America, where its range extends from Canada south to Michoacán, Mexico. It is found in every U.S. state except Hawaii.[2] The fast-growing, upright plant can reach heights of more than 3 m. It can be differentiated from most of the other members of its large genus by its honeycomb-pitted seeds, and further separated by its serrated, evenly lobed (more or less) lower leaves.[3]
Although widely regarded as a weed, this species was once one of several plants cultivated by Native Americans in prehistoric North America as part of the Eastern Agricultural Complex. C. berlandieri was a domesticated pseudocereal crop, similar to the closely related quinoa C. quinoa.[4][5] It continues to be cultivated in Mexico as a pseudocereal, as a leaf vegetable, and for its broccoli-like flowering shoots.