Chenopodium album L.

Code

CHEAL

Growth form

Broadleaf

Biological cycle

Annual

Habitat

Terrestrial

Algeria: Chenopodium album germinates at the end of winter and throughout spring; flowering takes place from April to November.
China: Chenopodium album flowers and fruits from May to October.
Madagascar: C. album flowers before most annual crops, as early as February.
Morocco: Chenopodium album flowers and fruits from March to September and all year round in irrigated crops.

Chenopodium album is an annual species, always propagated from seeds. Each plant produces about 30 to 40 000 seeds, but large plants may produce 500 000 seeds. The seeds may be dispersed by birds, or transported by the water. Seeds have been known to survive from 30 to 40 years in soil. Only the seeds in superficial layers of the soil are able to germinate. There are two types of seeds, some with hard envelope and dormant, and others with a supple envelope that can germinate immediately.

Algeria: Chenopodium album is a very common species in the various annual (especially summer irrigation vegetables) and perennial (especially vineyards) crops in the north of the country.
It is a species with late spring germination growing in silty and sandy loamy soils, humid and rich in fertilizing elements. Meso-xerophilic, the plant adapts its morphology to the quality of the soil: small, thin and not very prolific on thin, dry soil; large, branched and very prolific on rich, cool soil.

The plant is found from sea level to 3 600 meters and from lat 70°N to more than lat 50°S. It prefers light textured and well-drained soils but it is able to adapt to all inhabited areas of the world except in extreme desert climates.

Brazil: Chenopodium album is a very common crop weed.
Madagascar: C. album is a weed and ruderal species, nitrophilous, encountered in most climatic regions of Madagascar. It grows in proximity to cultivated areas near villages, on roadsides or in abandoned places and sometimes in sandy soil more or less salty in coastal areas. It is a weed of maize cultivation, vegetable cultivation, beans, semi-intensive with added organic fertilizer. It is present in all agro-climatic zones of Madagascar but particularly in volcanic areas on the uplands.
Mauritius: Species present but very rare in cultivation, on unoccupied lands and roadsides.
Morocco: Chenopodium album is a nitrophilous species found in crops, gardens, rubble and ruderalized fresh pastures, including in oases.
Reunion: C. Album occurs only at high altitude in Reunion Island, and mainly in Cilaos in the lens and Plaine des cafres and Plaine des Grègues in gardening rather above 600 m. The species prefers light well drained soil but is adaptable to any soil provided it is fertile. It is a ruderal species that likes rich soil.

Toxicity

Chenopodium album is a plant potentially toxic to ruminants when conditions allow it to accumulate nitrates, caution should be exercised when using poorly weeded forage crops.
Raw seeds are poisonous.
Plant with allergenic pollen.

Local harmfulness

Algeria : Chenopodium albun is a major "weed". It is one of the most harmful species of field crops because it can colonize practically all ecological environments (very frequent species), moreover its great adaptation to the agricultural environment gives it a very important potential of invasion (very high seed production) of the plots (very abundant species). It is very harmful because of its rapid growth, its great capacity to pump water from the soil, its greed for mineral elements, the high number of seeds produced that can be kept in the soil for a long time, and its capacity to harbour a large number of pathogens (viruses in particular) and crop pests.
The seeds are eaten by sheep and remain viable after passing through the digestive system (endozoochory), resulting in crops being soiled by manure that has not been carefully composted.
It is also a potentially toxic plant for ruminants when conditions allow it to accumulate nitrates, so caution should be exercised when using poorly weeded forage crops.
Plant with allergenic pollen.
 

Global harmfulness

Chenopodium album is a very invasive and very common weed in practically all crops. Abundant seed production and long viability in soil are responsible for its survival and rapid spread. 

Local harmfulness
 
Argentina: Chenopodium album is a weed considered as an invasive species by governmental decree.
Brazil: Chenopodium album is a very common weed forming dense stands, particularly in long day regions and especially in sugar beet crops.
Madagascar: Chenopodium album is a globally rare weed and is scarce in cultures but can be quite common though little abundant in vegetable cultivation in the Central Highlands (regions of Antsirabe and Antananarivo).
Mauritius: It does not represent a problem in crops because of its scarcity.
Reunion: This species is found mainly in vegetable cultivation in the south and the lens in Cilaos. It is a nitrophilous species, very competitive with respect to culture. In cultured lentils in Cilaos, this species is very common (Fr> 70%) with sometimes significant covering of 30-50%, which places it in the group of the top weed for that crop. It is also common in vegetable cultivation in the region of Tampon.

Food: In Algeria, the seeds were consumed as boiled cereals or ground and mixed with flour to make pancakes.

Food: The leaves and stem ends of Chenopodium album can be consumed as cooked spinach. The young stems are eaten like asparagus. The leaves are rich in protein, vitamins A and C and calcium. The consumption of raw foliage is unpleasant and not recommended because of the floury texture and of the content of the plant in saponin, nitrates and oxalic acid content of the plant. After cooking, saponin disappears but oxalates appear.
 
Dyer: A green dye is obtained from young shoots.
 
Ecological indicator: The plant responds directly to the magnesium and nitrogen content of the soil and thus it can be used as a bio indicator of these elements.
 
Other: Crushed fresh roots give a substitute to mild soap.

Local control

Algeria: Excess nitrogen and the use of non-composted organic matter should be avoided. The high availability of mineral nitrogen in the soil at the beginning of the crop cycle favours the growth of this nitophilic species more than the cultivated plant; late sowing (false sowing technique) therefore contributes to limit the soiling of the crop by this species.
All individuals that may develop in the vicinity of the plots and during rotations should be eliminated.
Harrows and hoeing machines are good at digging up this species, so weeding is particularly effective. Hand or machine pruning of the individuals as soon as they come into flower has a partial impact on the current crop but avoids seed formation. Mechanical weeding (hoeing, weeding harrow, rotary hoe, etc.) and thermal weeding (solarisation) give good results.
Seedlings can be controlled with diuron, linuron, prometryne, etc. Adult individuals are susceptible to 2,4-D, metribuzin, oxyfluorfene, prosulfocarb, trifluralin, etc.
 

Global control

Chemical: Post-emergence application of 2,4-D at 500 g/ha or metsulfuron at 4 g/ha. In wheat crops, pre and early post-emergence application of Stomp 330 E and Buctril-M 40 EC.

Local control

Madagascar: Chenopodium album is a fast-growing species but quite easy to eliminate with manual weeding.
Mauritius: It can be easily controlled by manual weeding or hoeing.

Herbarium pictures ReCOLNAT: https://explore.recolnat.org/search/botanique/simplequery=Chenopodium%2520album