The extraordinary properties of amaranth, or shiritsa, have been known for more than eight millennia. Then it was grown as a grain and vegetable crop and used for food. Now the plant is successfully used in landscape design.
The Greek name "amaranth" is translated as "unfading", and indeed, this plant blooms with beautiful lush brooms all summer, and in late autumn its spikelets form interesting shapes with spherical seed boxes that look no worse than the inflorescences themselves.
In the design of landscape design, 4 varieties of decorative amaranth are used:
- tricolor;
- sad;
- caudate;
- paniculate.
Since amaranth is undemanding to the soil, coexists on almost any soil and does not need regular maintenance, it can be easily planted in moderately arid areas. Because of these convenient qualities, the plant is very fond of using landscape designers to decorate park areas, squares and personal plots.
For the most part, bushes of shiritsa are quite large, which must be taken into account when designing the landscape. Tall amaranth varieties are suitable for large flower arrangements, and are also good as tapeworms.
The hanging branches of tailed or sad amaranth will look very impressive in a hedge, however, like other decorative widths.
With this magnificent plant you can decorate flower beds, in addition, amaranth harmonizes well with perennial and annual flowering crops, as well as with some ornamental shrubs.
You can use this unpretentious plant in any plantings, for example, on flowerbeds in parks and squares, flower beds, borders, mixborders and naturgardens. Against the background of lawn grass, the shiritsa will stand out with its original color, creating bright accents.
In the summer cottage, tall bushes of shiritsa will cover the walls of buildings or unsightly barriers.
A three-color decorative-leafy amaranth will decorate any flowerbed or border.
In addition to decorative applications in landscape design, amaranth is actively used in cooking, especially in oriental cuisine. The seeds, leaves and stems of this plant are extremely beneficial for our body. In the perfumery industry, oils from the seeds of shiritsa are added to perfumes and eau de toilette, and bride’s wedding bouquets are often decorated with beautiful panicle inflorescences. This unique plant is so diverse that it is simply impossible to leave it unattended!
