Atriplex hortensis organic seeds - Green atriplex, mountain spinach

Grow Organic green orach (Atriplex hortensis) from seed. This ancient leaf vegetable with green foliage is very productive and easy to grow. This annual plant, a cousin of spinach, forms tall stems covered in abundant, tasty triangular leaves within a few weeks. Sow in borders or spaced rows, to provide fresh leaves to cut as needed. Hardy, green orach finds a place in the organic vegetable garden or in a country garden.

Botanically, orach belongs to the Amaranthaceae family (formerly Chenopodiaceae). The species Atriplex hortensis bears many common names: orach, garden orach, green orach, mountain spinach, giant spinach, belle-dame, bonne-dame, chou d’amour or folette. The green-leaved forms are related to the botanical variety Atriplex hortensis var. viridis, the origin of many horticultural types known as green orach. These are old peasant selections, chosen for their deep green foliage, good productivity and a particularly pleasant texture in cooking; this green form is distinguished from red types by lighter leaves, often slightly waffled, and a very mild taste.
The botanical species is native to the Caucasus and Central Asia, as far as the steppes of Western Asia, where it grows spontaneously in fallow land, cultivated areas, base-rich soils and sometimes slightly saline soils. It was introduced and cultivated very early in Europe: already known to the Greeks and Romans, it was among the vegetables recommended in the Middle Ages in the domains of Charlemagne, before being gradually replaced by spinach.

Green orach is a fast-growing annual plant: sowing in spring gives plants ready to be harvested in six to eight weeks, then production continues all summer. The stems are erect, channelled and often slightly streaked with darker green and branch out as harvesting progresses reaching 1.50 to 2 m tall. The alternate, triangular, crinkly leaves can measure up to about twenty centimetres on well-nourished plants. In this green form, the leaf is medium to dark green, slightly waffled, with a surface that is initially finely chalky then smooth as it ages; the foliage is annual, the plant disappearing completely in winter. In summer, from June-July until September depending on the climate, the plant produces long panicles of small greenish-yellow flowers, grouped in the leaf axils and at the stem tips. Orach bears male and female flowers on the same plant; pollination is mainly ensured by the wind. The tiny fruits are utricles surrounded by yellowish membranous bracts, which contain black or dark brown seeds of variable size; these remain viable for several years and easily produce self-sown seedlings.

In the garden, green orach is grown as simply as spinach. It is sown directly in place, from March to August, depending on the region. Young leaves are picked as needed, for salads, omelettes or vegetable stir-fries; the terminal shoots are then regularly harvested, which encourages branching and delays flowering.
In an ornamental vegetable garden, green orach is happ in the background of a bed of salad leaves or beetroot, where its tall, ample foliage provides light shade. It forms beautiful combinations with beetroot 'Chioggia' with ringed roots, a red lettuce like 'Red Salad Bowl', organic borage or a mixed organic pot marigold: these associations offer a very lively vegetable garden, where green and purple foliage and bright flowers mingle on the plate and in the garden.

Orach leaves are used like spinach: its leaves are eaten raw in salad or cooked in a stew, in a gratin, in a pie... They pair well with Sorrel. It is a low-calorie vegetable, containing a lot of fibre, vitamin C and minerals. However, due to its richness in oxalic acid, it should be consumed in moderation by people with kidney stones.

Orach is not demanding, it is content with a fairly poor soil or one previously manured and a sunny or partially shaded position. Its only weakness is its tendency to bolt quickly during dry spells. To remedy this minor drawback, we advise you to stagger sowings over time.

Harvest: the leaves are picked as they develop, according to need. The first harvests generally occur 4 months after sowing.

Storage: Orach does not keep very well in the refrigerator as it tends to soften. It is best to consume it a few hours after harvesting. You can, however, freeze it after blanching for 3 minutes in salted boiling water.

The gardener's little tip: to limit weeding, we advise you to mulch the soil with successive thin layers of grass clippings, if possible mixed with dead leaves. This protection, which keeps the soil moist, also limits watering.

Organic or "AB" seeds come from plants grown without phytosanitary products (insecticides, herbicides). These seeds also do not undergo any post-harvest treatment. They bear the AB label and are certified by Ecocert, which is an independent body.