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Bractscale

Atriplex serenana

Also called Bracteate orach, Stinking orach

Bractscale (Atriplex serenana) is a mat-forming annual saltbush from coastal California and Baja California that grows in saline and alkaline soils. It is a species, and it is best grown in full sun with sandy, salty or alkaline soil and minimal water.

Family
Amaranthaceae (Amaranth & beet family)
Grows as
Annual
Light
Full sun
Water
Water sparingly; it tolerates drought and salty conditions and is more prone to rot if overwatered.
Soil
Sandy or gritty, saline or alkaline soil; well-drained mix
Temperature
Mild coastal conditions; tolerates cool to warm temperatures, protect from hard frost
How easy
Easy
Native range
California to NW. Nevada and Mexico (Baja California)
Climate
subtropical

About

Atriplex serenana is a species of saltbush known by the common names bractscale and stinking orach. It is native to California and Baja California, where it grows in saline and alkaline soils such as those on alkali flats and beach bluffs.

This is a mat-forming annual herb producing scaly stems up to a meter long. The toothed leaves are 1 to 4 centimeters long. The flowers are generally borne in hard clusters along the stem and there is sometimes a spikelike inflorescence of male flowers at the end of the stem.

Other Atriplex plants

Tubercled saltbush · Swamp Saltbush · Fan Saltbush · Silverscale saltbush · Native Orache · Atriplex billardierei · Silver saltbush · Fourwing saltbush · Gray saltbush · Flat-topped saltbush · Shadscale saltbush · Heartscale

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Atriplex serenana by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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