Amaranthus viridis, Heldreich, 1899

Raus, Thomas, 2022, Taxonomic, nomenclatural and floristic review of Amaranthaceae of Greece and neighbouring countries, Willdenowia 52 (3), pp. 335-357 : 348

24. Amaranthus viridis L., Sp. Pl., ed. 2: 1405. 1763. –

Lectotype (designated by Fawcett & Rendle 1914: 131):

Herb. Linn. No. 1117.15 (LINN).

– “ Amaranthus gracilis ” auct. [non Amaranthus gracilis Desf., Tabl. École Bot. : 43. 1804 nec Poir. in Lam.,

Encycl. Méthod., Suppl. 1: 312. 1810; see Iamonico 2015b, 2016b].

Remarks — Native from SE Mexico to N Argentina, this species is introduced as a ruderal weed in tropical, subtropical and warm-temperate regions worldwide ( Bayón 2015: 370). An established xenophyte in Greece ( Arianoutsou & al. 2010), it is known from most parts of the country (except North Pindos and North Central, perhaps due to its lacking frost resistance; there are also no records from North Macedonia and Bulgaria, see Iamonico 2015a). It is also given as naturalized in coastal Albania ( Barina & al. 2017; 2018) and European Turkey ( Iamonico 2015a, based on Roy & al. 2022). Unfortunately, the name Amaranthus viridis has been misapplied to A. blitum in influential Greek floras ( Halácsy 1904; Rechinger 1944), which makes previous floristic records doubtful unless specimens are revised. Forms of A. emarginatus , showing an elongate terminal spike-like inflorescence similar to that of A. viridis , differ sufficiently by their smaller, apically emarginate to bilobate leaves and constantly smaller fruit and seed dimensions.