Pig Weed – Israel wild flowers

Amaranthus viridis, Amaranthus gracilis, Pig Weed, Slender Amaranth, Green Amaranth,

Hebrew: ירבוז עדין, Arabic: عرف الديك

Scientific name:   Amaranthus viridis L.
Synonym name:   Amaranthus gracilis Desf.
Common name:   Pig Weed, Slender Amaranth, Green Amaranth
Hebrew name:   ירבוז עדין
Arabic name:   عرف الديك
Family:   Amaranthaceae, ירבוזיים


Life form:   Annual herb
Stems:   Green, often reddish; slender, cylindrical, smooth and striate
Leaves:   Alternate, long-petiolated
Flowers:   Monoecious, green, forming a glomerule or grouped in a spike; 3 linear or lanceolated sepals, 3 stamens. The pistillate flowers are at the base of the spike and are more numerous than staminate ones. The male flowers at the upper part of the spike have 5 stamens
Fruits / pods:   Ovoid capsule, indehiscent, 1.2mm long and 1mm large, with one seed. The upper side of the fruit has a short stigma divided into three-pieces
Flowering Period:   April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November
Habitat:   Cultivated areas (weeds)
Distribution:   Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Shrub-steppes, Deserts and extreme deserts, Montane vegetation of Mt. Hermon
Chorotype:   Plurireginalbor-trop
Summer shedding:   Ephemeral


Derivation of the botanical name:

Amaranthus Greek amarantos αμαραντοϛ, “unfading,” a never fading flower, referring to the long-lasting flowers.

viridis, green.
The Hebrew word ירבוז, Yarbuz , probably from Persian. In Aramaic it is called ‘ירבוזא’, ‘Yarbuza’.

  • The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.
  • The standard author abbreviation Desf. is used to indicate René Louiche Desfontaines (1750 – 1833), a French botanist.

Amaranthus viridis is used as vegetable.