DESCRIPTION: These plants form handsome, annual or tender perennial shrubs that are grown for ornament or as a vegetable. Those grown for decoration are only hardy in mild climates. A. Halimus forms a shrub, 3 to 4 feet high with silvery-gray foliage. It grows well by the seaside in mild climates. A. Breweri and A. canescens also have gray leaves. These plants should be pruned in March to maintain a shapely appearance. A. hortensis, Mountain Spinach or Orach, is a tall, frost-hardy annual that is adapted as a weed in many parts of the world. It has red or purplish-red leaves and the flower spikes are pretty for cutting. In places where it grows wild, it may reach a height of 4 to 6 feet and a width of 2 to 3 feet, but is a more manageable size when cultivated. Orach is more popular in Europe than in the U.S. and has been cultivated for a long time there for culinary and medicinal purposes. Here it is grown as a potherb for its tender young greens.
POTTING: Orach can live in alkaline soil, survive drought and hot and cold weather. Use a preplant fertilizer and water often to encourage fast, tender growth. Orach greens are at their best in the spring or autumn. The whole plant should be pulled up when they're young and only have 6 to 8 leaves. If they grow large, pick only small, tender leaves for table use. Early harvest prevents Orach from dropping seeds and becoming a weedy nuisance.
PROPAGATION: As soon as the soil can be worked in the spring, seeds are sown in bands, 12 inches wide. Plant Orach at 3 to 4 week intervals from early spring through late summer to provide a continuous supply of young plants to harvest.
VARIETIES: Specialists carry red, green and white varieties. White Orach, which is really a greenish white color, is the best for cooking. Very young leaves can be mixed with other greens in salads.