Lamb's Quarters

Chenopodiaceae

LIFE FORM: Summer annual

NATIVITY: North America

VEGETATIVE CHARACTERISTICS:

Can grow up to 6 feet tall; alternate leaves are dull-green, 2 to 4 inches long, and variably shaped with irregular teeth.

FLOWERS:

Large inflorescences terminate the branches in late summer; individual flowers green and inconspicuous.

FRUIT/DISPERSAL AGENTS:

Seeds fall to the ground at maturity and can remain viable in the soil for decades if not centuries.

ECOLOGICAL PREFERENCE:

Tolerant of a wide variety of soil types and moisture conditions. Prefers trampled lawns in public parks; neglected residential and commercial landscapes; minimally maintained public parks and open space; vacant lots and rubble dump sites; abandoned grasslands (meadows); woodlands that develop on abandoned open space; small-scale pavement openings (tree pits) and cracks; chain-link fence lines; rock outcrops and stone walls; unmowed highway banks and median strips with frequent salt applications; railroad tracks with ballast substrate.

ENVIRONMENTAL FUNCTION:

Salt tolerance along roadways; drought tolerance on compacted soils; food and/or habitat for wildlife; erosion control on slopes; soil building on degraded land.

CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE:

Greens in spring are edible; they are good for treating stomach aches and preventing scurvy.