(1/4-oz) 7000+Seeds Red Stripe Leaf Amaranth seeds; 紅莧菜; Rau Den; Red Callaloo / Chinese Summer Spinach

Description

(1/4-oz )or 7000+ Seeds Edible Amaranth Red Stripe Leaf 紅莧菜 heirloom non-GMO; a.k.a. Red Callaloo This is one of our top sellers!!! This heirloom Chinese/Taiwan Amaranth variety is a staple food in many Asian cultures. Super easy to grow. Fast growing summer veggies that thrive in heat & humidity. Need more seeds? 1-OZ jumbo packet has 28,000+ seeds. Note 1/4-OZ is probably all you need, unless you have several hundred sqft garden space for amaranth alone. Some growing tips: • Prepare the veggie bed with lots of organic matters such as compost, work the soil at least 4″ deep, 6″ would be even better. • Do not sow too early in the spring! Direct sowing when overnight low is above 50F, or 2-4 weeks after the last frost. Amaranth loves heat, sun & humidity. Here in SW Chicago burb zone 5B, I would not sow the seeds until May 20th, and first harvest can begin by late June. I would sow three crops (late May, mid June, early July) each year. • Do not over-seed, as 7 grams of seeds (~7,000) can cover 100-150 sqft area easily • Used phased approach, cultivate a subplot every two to three weeks, to continue the harvest throughout the summer months • Cover the seeds with 1/4” fine soil; keep soil moist for about a week to ensure high germination rate (advance catalyst technique is to use poly cover as humidity/heat dome ) • Water in the morning rather than in the evening, as caterpillars and slugs love the moisture • If too many seedlings, thin out the crowded area and eat them as stir fried baby greens, make soup, or add them to ramen noodles. Overcrowding is the most common crop failure root cause. • Amaranth is ready to harvest in just 35 to 45 days after sowing. Cut off the stem an inch above the first “branch”. This will allow second harvest in just two weeks. I have home gardener friends using this method for multiple harvests during summer months. The most common recipe is stir fry: – cut the amaranth into 2″ sections (longer segments for leaves are fine; shorter segments for stems) – heat up the pan with couple spoons of cooking oil – toss in generous amount of minced/chopped garlic; let it sizzle for 20 seconds or so – put in stems first, stir fry for 30 seconds or so – put in leaves second, stir fry for another minute or two (do not under-cook) – add sea salt and nothing else (no soy sauce, no black pepper) – add a bit of water to make it a bit watery – add corn starch (prefixed in water) to make the sauce gravy-like