Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
Amaranthus macrocarpus
Common name
Dwarf Amaranth
Family
Amaranthaceae
Where found
Variety of habitats, mostly in depressions or low-lying situations. Mostly in the Sydney area.
Notes
Annual herb to 0.3 m tall often prostrate to sprawling. Stems hairless. Leaves alternating up the stems, 0.8-4 cm long, 4–15 mm wide, hairless, margins entire, tips notched or with a mucro. Male and female flowers on the same plant. Flowers greenish, with 3 'petals', (occasionally 4 in some flowers on the same plant), each 1.5–5 mm long, bracts 1-1.5 mm long. Flowers in many-flowered globular clusters. Flowers summer-autumn.
var. macrocarpus 'Seeds' dark brown. Vulnerable Vic.
var. pallidus 'Seeds' straw-coloured.
PlantNET description of species and key to varieties: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Amaranthus~macrocarpus (accessed 3 January, 2021)
This identification key and fact sheets are available as a free mobile application:
