Amaranthus spinosus

Spiny amaranth, thorny amaranth, Thorny Amaranth

Family: Amaranthaceae · Type: perennial · Not Native

Spiny amaranth is a naturalized annual herb found in southern California and western Mojave Desert regions on roadsides and disturbed areas at elevations below 700 meters. Flowering from June to October, this plant produces small green flowers in dense axillary and terminal clusters with a silver-green appearance. Growing with erect stems 20 to 100 centimeters tall, the plant features distinctive paired spines at each node that diverge 8 to 15 millimeters from the stem. Its leaves are broadly ovate, 10 to 15 centimeters long with wedge-shaped bases and slightly wavy margins. The fruit is small, nearly spherical, and produces dark brown to black smooth, shiny seeds about 1 millimeter in diameter.

Habitat: +- rare waif roadsides, disturbed areas

Bloom period: Jun-Oct

Elevation: < 700 m

Bioregions: SCo, w DMoj

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.