Chenopodium album

Chenopodium album (pronunciation: /kɪˈnoʊpədiəm ˈælbəm/), commonly known as fat-hen, lamb's quarters, pigweed or goosefoot, is a species of Chenopodium, which is native to Europe but has been introduced to other continents like North America and Australia.

Etymology

The name Chenopodium album is derived from the Greek words chenos meaning goose and podion meaning little foot, referring to the shape of the leaves. The term album is Latin for white, referring to the plant's white coating.

Description

Chenopodium album is an annual or perennial herbaceous plant that grows up to 1-3 meters tall. The leaves are alternate and can vary in appearance. The first leaves, near the base of the plant, are toothed and roughly diamond-shaped, 3–7 cm long and 3–6 cm broad. The leaves on the upper part of the flowering stems are entire and lanceolate-rhomboid, 1–5 cm long and 0.4–2 cm broad; they are waxy-coated, unwettable and mealy in appearance with a whitish coat on the underside.

Uses

Chenopodium album has a long history of culinary use in many countries. The leaves and young shoots may be eaten as a leaf vegetable, either steamed in its entirety, or cooked like spinach. Each plant produces tens of thousands of black seeds. These are high in protein, vitamin A, calcium, phosphorus, and potassium.

Related Terms

Chenopodium: A genus of numerous species of perennial or annual herbaceous flowering plants known as the goosefoots.
Leaf vegetable: Vegetables that we eat as leaves, stems, buds.
Protein: A nutrient found in food (as meat, milk, eggs, and beans) that is made up of many amino acids joined together.
Vitamin A: A group of unsaturated nutritional organic compounds that includes retinol, retinal, retinoic acid, and several provitamin A carotenoids.
Calcium: A chemical element required as a nutrient for the body to function and develop.
Phosphorus: A chemical element that is very important for our body's cell functioning.
Potassium: A chemical element that is important for the normal functioning of the body.

External links

Medical encyclopedia article on Chenopodium album
Wikipedia's article - Chenopodium album

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Chenopodium album