Last edited on 2 Nov 2026. View history
Tampala Amaranth
Tampala Amaranth
A variety of amaranth
How to sow tampala amaranth: Direct seed, thin seedlings to 15cm
Sun requirement for tampala amaranth: Plant in Full Sun
A heat-loving green with red and green crinkled leaves, growing to about 1 m. Eaten as a green, especially lightly steamed or sauteed, and the leaves can be picked all summer. High in calcium, iron and other minerals. Common throughout Asia. Sent to Koanga (a NZ seed bank) in 1997. Broadcast in strips straight into beds from November to February, or sow in trays, prick out at 2.5 cm and transplant at 20 cm diagonal spacing when the leaves touch.
- 0
- plantings
- 0
- harvests
- 0
- seed packets
Tampala amaranth facts
Lifespan
Crop cycle
Max altitude
Optimal light
What are growing degree days?
A plant grows with warmth, not with days. A growing degree day is one day's worth of useful warmth: how many degrees the day's average temperature is above the lowest temperature the crop grows at. Add them up from planting and you know how far along the crop is, whatever the calendar says.
Say that lowest temperature is 10°C. A day averaging 17°C gives 7 growing degree days. A day averaging 8°C gives none, as it is too cold for the crop to grow. That is why the same lettuce takes about 50 days in a summer and 90 in an autumn: it needs the same total warmth either way.
For tampala amaranth, the FAO EcoCrop database gives a lowest growing temperature of 8°C and a shortest growing cycle of 30 days at its best temperature, about 540 growing degree days to a first harvest.
Where you've told us where your garden is, we use this and the weather there to predict when your tampala amaranth will be ready to harvest. We don't use it for how long a plant lives or when it finishes: we go by what members have logged for that.
Video
What people are saying about tampala amaranth
Nobody has posted about tampala amaranth yet.
Sign in or sign up to post your tips and experiences growing tampala amaranth.
Who's planted tampala amaranth
Nobody has planted this crop yet.
Sign in or sign up to track your tampala amaranth plantings.Tampala amaranth harvests
Nobody has harvested this crop yet.
Sign in or sign up to track your tampala amaranth harvests.Find tampala amaranth seeds
There are no seeds available to trade on Growstuff right now.
- Purchase seeds via Ebay
- Sign in or sign up to list your seeds to trade.
Ecological requirements
Data from the FAO EcoCrop database for Amaranthus tricolor L.
| Family / Taxonomy | Magnoliopsida Caryophyllidae Caryophyllales Amaranthaceae |
|---|---|
| Killing temperature | growth: 0 °C, rest: 4 °C |
| Life form | herb |
| Life span | annual |
| Habit | erect |
| Optimal soil depth | medium (50-150 cm) |
| Optimal soil texture | heavy, medium, light, organic |
| Optimal soil fertility | high |
| Optimal soil drainage | well (dry spells) |
| Optimal soil salinity | low (<4 dS/m) |
| Photoperiod | short day (<12 hours), neutral day (12-14 hours), long day (>14 hours) |
Learn more about tampala amaranth
Resources outside Growstuff.
