Crops Amaranth

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Common Name	AMARANTH
Latin binomial	Amaranthus Spp.
Plant family	Amaranthaceae
Names in other languages	Amarante (F), Fuchsschwanz (D), Amaranto (E)

Amaranths are familiar in parts of Europe as weeds and as ornamental plants, being grown for their pigmented foliage and showy floral structures. Several species were developed as food crops in central and Andean areas of the Americas, where archaeological records indicate their use for 6-7 thousand years: the grain was sufficiently important to be used for ceremonial purposes during the period of the Aztec empire.

This entry forms part of the publication Crops for Industry and Energy in Europe

References:

Janick, J & Simon, J E (Eds) (1990) Advances in New Crops. Proceedings of the First National Symposium on New Crops: Research, Development, Economics. Portland: Timber Press.

Janick, J & Simon, J E (Eds) (1993) New crops: Exploration, Research and Commercialisation. Proceedings of the Second National Symposium. New York: John Wiley & Sons.

National Research Council (1989) Lost Crops of the Incas: little-known Plants of the Andes with Promise for Worldwide Cultivation. Washington: National Academy Press.

Paredes-Lopez, O (1994) Amaranth: Biology, Chemistry and Technology. Boca Raton: CRC Press.

Sauer, J D (1994) Historical Geography of Crop Plants: a Select Roster. Boca Raton: CRC Press.

Williams, J T (Ed) (1995) Cereals and Pseudocereals. London: Chapman & Hall.