Edible Amaranth

Pests & beneficial insects

🐛 Prone to: Aphids

Aphids

Aphididae

Curled leaves, sticky honeydew and ants on patrol — usually with something already eating them.

, Flea beetles

Flea beetles

Chrysomelidae (Alticini)

Shot-holes in seedling leaves, and a beetle that jumps when you lean in.

.

Attract Hoverflies

Hoverflies

Syrphidae

The adults only drink nectar. It is the larvae that eat the aphids.

, Lacewings

Lacewings

Chrysopidae

Golden-eyed adults that mostly drink; larvae that hunt like small alligators.

, Ladybugs

Ladybugs

Coccinellidae

The one predator here where the adults hunt as hard as the larvae do.

, Parasitic wasps

Parasitic wasps

Braconidae, Ichneumonidae and relatives

Pinhead-sized, stingless, and lethal to aphids and caterpillars from the inside.

, Ground beetles

Ground beetles

Carabidae

Night-active ground hunters, taking slugs, cutworms and leatherjackets at soil level.

to keep them in check — plant Belgian EndiveGreat, LungwortGreat and SainfoinGreat nearby.

Growing from seed

Direct-sow Edible Amaranth outdoors about 2 weeks after your last frost, keeping seeds in warm soil (around 20–25 °C). Seeds usually come up in around 10 days. Grow in full sun, spaced about 30 cm apart. Expect to harvest in roughly 50 days.

Keep track of the seeds you own.

Companion Planting

• 
  Belgian Endive
  

  Belgian EndiveGreat pair

  • ❧Belgian Endive attracts Hoverflies and Lacewings and more, which prey on the Aphids that attack Edible Amaranth
  • ❧Belgian Endive roots deep while Edible Amaranth feeds near the surface — no competition
  • ❧Belgian Endive acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Edible Amaranth
• 
  Alpine Strawberry
  

  Alpine StrawberryGreat pair

  • ❧Alpine Strawberry attracts Ground beetles, which prey on the Flea beetles that attack Edible Amaranth
  • ❧Alpine Strawberry acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Edible Amaranth
  • ❧Edible Amaranth gives Alpine Strawberry sheltering shade in the heat of summer
• 
  fescue
  

  fescueGreat pair

  • ❧fescue attracts Ground beetles, which prey on the Flea beetles that attack Edible Amaranth
  • ❧fescue acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Edible Amaranth
  • ❧Edible Amaranth gives fescue sheltering shade in the heat of summer

How to grow Edible Amaranth

1. Sow2 weeks from frost
2. Germinates10 days
3. Space30 cm apart
4. GrowFull sun
5. Harvest~50 days

Water: Medium · Height: 120 cm · Soil: Well-draining, fertile — heat-loving