Amaranthus spp.
Origin: Cameroon
Improvement status: Landrace
Seeds per packet: ~90
Germination tested 12/2023: 67%
Life cycle: Annual
EFN INTRODUCTION. 'Folong' is an absolutely delicious vegetable-type amaranth from Cameroon with large, tender, mild-flavored leaves (Nate likes them even better than spinach!), and plentiful edible black seeds as well. When we grew this the first time, the leaves, stems, and flower-heads on nearly all plants were yellowish green, but one plant had evident pink pigmentation even as a seedling, so we isolated it. As it grew, the pink blush remained on the stem and also appeared on the flower-head upon flowering. We decided to offer some of the copious seeds that plant produced here, because it is especially beautiful — and just as delicious as its green-yellow cousins. While most amaranth has an earthy flavor that some people find unpleasant, this African variety has basically none of that flavor, especially after cooking. Sauteed with garlic, you might just think it's the best spinach you've ever had.
These seeds were grown in collaboration with our partners at The Seed Farm at Princeton University, from stock seed collected in Cameroon by our friend and Cooperative Gardens Commission colleague Marissa Donohue in 2021.
NOTE: Only the photo of the ripening seed-head shows the "pink blush" plants. There two are the green 'Folong', just here to show size and growth habit when younger (at prime leaf-harvest time).
GROWING TIPS: Start in flats a few weeks before last frost or direct sow after frost danger has passed. Seedlings start out very tiny, and they are delicate for the first week or two, but soon after that they explode. Expect plants to grow from 4 to 6 feet tall.
