Common Name: Quail Bush

General Information

Atriplex lentiformis is an evergreen shrub growing 100 - 250cm tall, exceptionally to 350cm. The plant is usually wider than it is tall[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and a medicine. It is used in soil reclamation and stabilization projects.

Known Hazards

No member of this genus contains any toxins, all have more or less edible leaves. However, if grown with artificial fertilizers, they may concentrate harmful amounts of nitrates in their leaves.

Botanical References

,

Range

South-western N. America - California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas and Mexico

Habitat

Saline to essentially non-saline drainages, stream and canal banks, roadsides, warm desert shrub, saltbush, and riparian communities; at elevations from 70 - 1,000 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Shrub
Height	2.00 m
Pollinators	Wind
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

This species is not hardy in the colder areas of the temperate zone, it tolerates temperatures down to between -5 and -10°c[].
Requires a position in full sun in any well-drained but not too fertile soil[]. Tolerates saline and very alkaline soils[]. Succeeds in a hot dry position. Plants can tolerate seasonal inundation[].
Forms growing in coastal and near coastal regions of California have somewhat broader, nearly ovate, rounded leaves, and they have been regarded either at species level as Atriplex breweri S.Watson or as a sub-species of Atriplex lentiformis[].
The plant has several different forms, each adapted to different environmental conditions. In addition, there are variousploidy levels - as well as diploids, there are triploids, tetrapoids etc. Although ploidy levels can only be shown by testing samples of the plant, they are adapted in particular to different moisture levels and elevations. It is important, therefore, when choosing plants for a specific location to ensure that you obtain seed/plant material from a similar site[].
Plants are more commonly dioecious, though monoecious forms can also be found[].
Plants can change sex. They typically change from dioecious to monoecious, but can also change from female to male. The ability to change sex appears to enhance survival and may provide a reproductive advantage to the population[].

Edible Uses

Leaves and young shoots - cooked[].

Seed - cooked[, ]. It can be used as a piñole or be ground into a meal and used as a porridge, a thickener in soups or added to flour for making bread[]. The seed is rather small and fiddly to use[].

Medicinal

The fresh leaves can be chewed, or the dried leaves smoked, in the treatment of head colds[].

The crushed flowers, stems and leaves can be steamed and inhaled to treat nasal congestion[].

A poultice of the powdered roots has been applied to sores[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant is often used, both within its native range and in suitable habitats outside it, in soil reclamation and stabilization projects[].

Other Uses

The crushed leaves and roots have been used as a soap for washing clothes etc[].

Propagation

Seed - sow mid spring in a cold frame in a compost of peat and sand. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 3 weeks at 13°c[]. Pot up the seedlings when still small into individual pots, grow on in a greenhouse for the first winter and plant out in late spring or early summer after the last expected frosts. Stored seed is known to have a viability of at least 5 years[].
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, mid summer in a frame. Very easy. Pot up as soon as they start to root (about 3 weeks) and plant out in their permanent positions late in the following spring[].
Cuttings of mature wood of the current season's growth, late autumn in a frame. Very easy. Pot up in early spring and plant out in their permanent position in early summer[].