Australia > All Weeds > Kochia

Kochia Bassia scoparia Origin: Native of Europe and Asia.

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Alternative Name(s): Kochia scoparia Family: Chenopodiaceae. Known Hazards: Plants contain some saponins and should not be eaten in large quantities. Saponins are a toxin found in many of our daily foods such as many beans. They are usually present in quantities too small to be concerned about and are also very poorly absorbed by the body, tending to pass straight through without causing any problems. Saponins are much more toxic to some creatures, such as fish, and hunting tribes have traditionally put large quantities of them in streams, lakes etc in order to stupefy or kill the fish. Habitat: Roadsides, ditches and wasteland. Edibility Rating: 2 (1-5) Medicinal Rating: 2 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics: Erect annual herb to 1.8 m high. Leaves lanceolate, 2–12 cm long, 0.5–12 mm wide with 1–5 conspicuous veins; margins entire, fringed with hairs. Fruit star-shaped containing a single seed. Seeds oval, 1–2 mm long, brown or black.
Flowers: Inconspicuous, 2.3–3 mm wide, green, in groups of 2 to 6 in leaf-like bracts, amongst tufts of hairs longer than the flowers. Flowers summer.The flowers are pollinated by Wind.

Distinguishing features: Distinguished by simple to much-branched stems that are often shortly hairy but may be hairless, often red with age; leaves alternate, narrow-lanceolate with upper surface hairless, lower surface usually with dense covering of appressed hairs; flowers on short dense spikes in axils of upper branches or at ends of branches; base of flower surrounded by 5-lobed calyx with horizontal wings that persist around globeshaped fruit.

Dispersal: Spread by seed, particularly by tumbling dead plants.

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Edible Uses

Medicinal Uses

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