Opopeo Amaranth
A high-yielding shorter-season grain amaranth from the mountains of Mexico. An easy way to grow grain, with no hulls to worry about. The plants are gorgeous, and well worth growing for their beauty alone, or as a temporary tall screen with crimson-red plumes atop 6-9 foot plants. High-yielding in spite of its shorter season, and gives lots of carbon for the compost pile as well. The leaves are veined with deep red, with an iridescent underside. Amaranths love heat, and this one sailed through a long string of days over 100, but Opopeo's mountain heritage makes it adaptable to cooler summers or cold nights as well. Plant after soil is warm. If you have pigweed in your garden, start this in pots, so you can tell the seedlings from pigweed, which it resembles when young. If you direct-sow, you can use the thinnings for cooking greens--they have a flavor almost identical to spinach, and are a popular quelite (edible weed) in Mexico. The tall plants can be planted in threes and tied together to provide more stability in wind. Or take a tip from Will Bonsall's wonderful garden book and grow pole beans up them as a natural tripod. 500 seeds