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Gomphrena celosioides

prostrate globe-amaranth

Amaranthaceae

Tropical America (naturalized in Australia)

Attracts Pollinators Drought Tolerant

SunFull Sun

WaterVery Low · drought-tolerant

Overview

Gomphrena celosioides is a low, spreading annual to short-lived perennial herb with several hairy stems radiating from a stout taproot, forming a mat 4-12 inches (10-30 cm) high and 8-20 inches (20-50 cm) across. The opposite leaves are oblong to spoon-shaped, 0.8-2.5 inches (2-6 cm) long, grey-green, and softly hairy. Flowers are packed into dense, cylindrical, silvery-white papery spikes 0.4-1.5 inches (1-4 cm) long at the stem tips, which lengthen as they age. Flowering continues through the warm months wherever moisture allows. The species is native to tropical America but has naturalized across northern and eastern Australia and many other warm regions, where it grows as a weed of lawns, footpaths, pastures, and disturbed ground. It tolerates heat, drought, and compacted soil, and the taproot makes established plants hard to pull. The papery flower spikes persist and shed numerous seeds, so plants spread quickly in open ground. It is regarded as an environmental and agricultural weed in parts of its naturalized range.

Native Range

Gomphrena celosioides is native to tropical and subtropical America. It has naturalized widely across northern and eastern Australia and through the tropics and subtropics worldwide, growing on roadsides, lawns, pastures, and other disturbed open ground.

Suggested Uses

Rarely cultivated, appearing mainly as a volunteer weed of lawns, paths, and disturbed sites. It gives quick low cover on bare disturbed ground but is generally managed as a weed rather than planted. Heavy seeding makes it unsuited to ornamental beds.

How to Identify

Several softly hairy stems spread flat from a central taproot, carrying grey-green oblong leaves 0.8-2.5 inches (2-6 cm) long. The flowers form dense, cylindrical, silvery-white papery spikes 0.4-1.5 inches (1-4 cm) long that lengthen with age. The prostrate habit and white papery spikes separate it from the upright, colorful garden Gomphrena globosa.

Appearance

Size & Dimensions

Height4" - 1'

Width/Spread8" - 1'8"

Colors

Flower Colors

white

Foliage Colors

grey green

Fall Foliage Colors

no change

Bloom Information

Bloom Period

~26 weeks

Spring Summer Fall

Silvery-white papery flower spikes appear through the warm months and after rain, spring to autumn in warm climates and much of the year in the tropics. The spikes lengthen as the lower flowers age and set seed. Old spikes persist on the plant in a faded straw color.

Detailed Descriptions

Foliage Description

Grey-green

Growing Conditions

Sun Requirements

SunFull Sun

Requires 6-12 hours of direct sunlight daily

• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight

• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight

• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight

Soil Requirements

pH Range5.5 - 7.5(Neutral)

357912

Soil Types

sand loam clay

Drainagewell drained

Water & Climate

Water Needs

Very Low

Drought Tolerance

Drought tolerant when established

Care & Maintenance

Care Guide

Gomphrena celosioides grows in full sun in almost any well-drained soil, including poor, sandy, and compacted ground. It is highly drought- and heat-tolerant once the taproot is established and needs no irrigation or feeding. The plant is frost-sensitive and behaves as a warm-season annual where winters are cold, roughly USDA zones 9-11. Because it self-seeds heavily and is treated as a weed, it is not generally planted in gardens and is instead managed or removed. Removing plants before the spikes set seed reduces spread.

Pruning

No pruning is undertaken for this weedy species. Where control is wanted, plants are removed with the taproot before the flower spikes mature and shed seed. Mowing tends to produce a flatter, more spreading form.