Short Description
The common orache can grow up to one meter high.
The lower leaves are arrow-shaped and often opposite each other on the stem. The upper leaves are elongated and narrow. They are solitary and alternate on the stem. All leaves are dark green to grayish.
The stem grows erect and is clearly ribbed and striped in the upper part. It is strongly branched with long branches protruding horizontally in all directions.
The inconspicuous flowers are in clusters of four to ten flowers in interrupted spikes on the stem. There are male and female flowers.
The round nut fruits are light brown or reddish-black. They are enclosed by two triangular green bracts. The bracts serve as wings for wind dispersal.
Features
Common orache
Atriplex patula
arrow-shaped lower leaves
striped upper stem
In the city
Due to its undemanding nature, it is a typical ruderal species. It colonizes short-lived weeds in fields and gardens, grows on rubble sites, roads or paths and on dry riverbanks. It prefers nutrient-rich, loose clay and loam soils. It is salt tolerant.
Fun Facts
The fresh ripe seeds are considered a laxative.
The flowering period is from July to October.
It is an annual plant. This means the plant dies in the first year after the maturation of the seeds.
Pollination is usually by wind or self-pollination, rarely by insects.
The bracts surrounding the fruit elongate after flowering and serve as a flight organ for wind dispersal.
- Endangerment level Germany: not endangered
It is native to Germany.
The young leaves and the shoots contain a lot of vitamin C and are suitable as wild vegetables.
Sources
Blüten, Rasbak, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atriplex_patula_inflorescence,_uitstaande_melde_bloeiwijze_(5).jpg
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Habitus, Matt Lavin, CC BY-SA 2.0 , https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atriplex_patula_(5129936480).jpg
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Habitus, Stefan.lefnaer, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atriplex_patula_sl1.jpg
Kammer, P. M. (2016) Pflanzen einfach bestimmen. Schritt für Schritt einheimische Arten kennenlernen, Bern: Haupt Verlag.
Schauer, T., Caspari, C. & Caspari, S. (2015) Der illustrierte BLV-Pflanzenführer für unterwegs. 1150 Blumen, Gräser, Bäume und Sträucher, München: BLV.
Spohn, M., Golte-Bechtle, M. & Spohn, R. (2015) Was blüht denn da? Stuttgart: Franckh Kosmos Verlag.
Page „Spreizende Melde“. : Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Date of last revision: 19.09.2017, 17:58 UTC. URL: https://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spreizende_Melde&oldid=169254653 (Accessed: 02.01.2018).