The open plant encyclopedia
Snap a photo or search by any name to see how to care for it, where it comes from, whether it's safe, and a 3D model you can turn.
The plants people record most in your country, and ones that grow there wild.
Filter by what you want to do, shape, origin, country, care and safety.
Chenopodiastrum murale
Also called Nettle Leaved Goosefoot, Sowbane, Nettleleaf Goosefoot, Nettle Leaf Fat Hen, Nettle Leaf Goosefoot, Saltgreen, Wall Goosefoot
Chenopodiastrum murale is a fast-growing annual weed of fields, roadsides and waste ground, widely grown or foraged as a leafy green. It is easy to grow from seed in most open, sunny spots.
Chenopodiastrum murale (Syn. Chenopodium murale) is a species of plant in the family Amaranthaceae known by the common names nettle-leaved goosefoot, Australian-spinach, salt-green, and sowbane. This plant is native to Europe and parts of Asia and northern Africa, but it is widespread worldwide, particularly in tropical and subtropical areas due to the ease of it being introduced. It is a common weed of fields and roadsides.
The seeds are edible, and the shoots, stalks, and leaves can be eaten as greens. The 1889 book The Useful Native Plants of Australia records that common names include "Australian spinach" and "fat-hen". It also states that it is a "pot-herb", which may be utilised in the same manner as spinach.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Chenopodiastrum murale 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.
