Chenopodium album L.
lamb's-quarters (lambsquarters)
Amaranthaceae (Amaranth family)
(Previously in Chenopodiaceae)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Photograph

© Alfred Cook     (Photo ID #8271)

Map

E-Flora BC Static Map

Distribution of Chenopodium album
Click here to view the full interactive map and legend

Species Information

General:
Annual herb from a taproot; stems erect, solitary, branched, 0.2-1.0 m tall, greenish to greyish-mealy, often reddish-tinged with age.
Leaves:
Stem leaves alternate, somewhat succulent, broadly lanceolate, deltoid, egg-shaped or diamond-shaped, 3-10 cm long, shallowly to prominently toothed or lobed, sparsely to densely mealy.
Flowers:
Inflorescence of densely clustered terminal or axillary spikes, greenish; with or without bracts.
Fruits:
Thin, membranous envelopes 1-1.5 mm broad; seeds black, shiny, flattened.
Notes:
The two subspecies recognized by Tutin (1964) for C. album appear to be present in our flora. They may be distinguished as follows:

1. Leaves lanceolate, egg-shaped or diamond-shaped, often abruptly sharp-pointed, margins not always parallel; stems green or red................ ssp. Album

1. Leaves oblong, obtuse, margins more or less parallel; stems often red striped.......................ssp. striatum (Krasan) J. Murr in Urban & Graebn.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Chenopodium album

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information
 Value / Class

Avg

Min

Max
Elevation (metres)
 719 1 1260
Slope Gradient (%)
 20 0 100

Aspect (degrees)
[0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]

 179 19 360
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR)
[0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic;
8 - hydric] 		3 0 7
Modal Nutrient Regime
Class
 D
# of field plots
 species was recorded in:
 90
Modal BEC Zone Class
 BG

All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in

 BG(47), BWBS(1), CDF(1), IDF(28), MS(1), PP(7), SBS(1)

Habitat and Range

Mesic to dry fields, waste places and gardens in the lowland, steppe and montane zones; common throughout BC except the Queen Charlotte Islands and adjacent coast; introduced from Eurasia.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

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