Common Allergy Triggers in Arizona
Common Name: Pigweeds/Tumbleweeds/Waterhemp
Scientific Name: Amaranthus spp.
Photo Courtesy of Walter S. Judd
Photo Courtesy of Dr. John Meade, Prof. Emeritus, Rutgers Cooperative Extension
Photo Courtesy of Allergenica (TM)
| Habitat: | Disturbed areas, lawns, roadsides, wasteplaces |
|---|---|
| Range: | Variously throughout region |
| Season: | Spring to fall |
| Type: | Annual herbs |
| Characteristics: | Stems erect, spreading or prostrate |
| Leaves: | Alternate, simple, often hairy along veins on the underside, frequently glandular, leaf stems long |
| Flowers: | Tiny, separate male and female flowers on same or different plants, red or green, borne on congested spikes |
| Flowering Season: | Spring to fall |
| Fruits: | Tiny, dry, 1-seeded |
| Allergenic Components: | Pollen, all parts |
| Allergenic Properties: | Respiratory |
| Comments: | Ingestion causes vitamin deficiency, bloat, gastroenteric irritation or rarely death, result from polonged excessive grazing by livestock. Cases are rare due to the low concentrations of toxins. Some species are popular and safe potherbs.This genus is composed of 60 species, many of which are common weeds known to cause much allergy. If ingested, the plant has caused poisoning of livestock and domestic animals.Other species include:A. albus (Tumbleweed)A. blitoides (Mat amaranth)A. hybridus ( Careless weed, Smooth amaranth)A. palmeri (Palmer's amaranth) reported to accumulate high concentrations of nitrates when growing on heavily fertilized soil.A. retroflexus (Pigweed, Redroot, Rough amaranth) Reported to accumulate high concentrations of nitrates when growing on heavily fertilized soil.A. rudis (Tall amaranth, Western waterhemp)A. spinosus (Pigweed, Spring amaranth)A. tuberculatus (Western waterhemp, Rough fruit amaranth)A. viridis (Slender amaranth) |
Arizona Allergen Index | National Map
*Data Courtesy of Betrock Information Systems
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