We will launch our 2025 seed catalogue on Tuesday, January 7th! 100 new varieties. Over 650 total varieties. Sourced from over 50 different small scale seed savers from across the country. We will stop shipping orders on Monday, December 30th and resume filling orders after we launch the new catalogue. Plant a seed, grow the revolution!

'Opopeo' Amaranth
'Opopeo' Amaranth
'Opopeo' Amaranth

'Opopeo' Amaranth

Regular price $3.75 Sale

Amaranthus hybridus

Origin: The Americas

Improvement status: Cultivar

Seeds per packet: ~200

Germination tested 08/2024: 90%

Life cycle: Annual

'Opopeo' is a Mexican amaranth variety used for both its leaves and seeds. It has a beautiful magenta-red seed head bearing tiny tan-colored seeds which can be used as a grain (for cookies, cakes, crackers, bread, porridge, or "polenta"), and even popped for a traditional Mexican snack (typically mixed with honey and known as "alegria"). The grain has a unique, earthy taste which many people adore. Nate likes to boil amaranth until well-done and then mix it with a little cream (or sour cream) and honey. The purple-tinted leaves of this amaranth are also quite tasty, though much better cooked than raw. Amaranth is very easy to grow, and a single plant can produce a pint of seeds and many pounds of leaves over the course of a season. Our seed comes from Aaron Parker of Edgewood Nursery in Maine.

GROWING TIPS: May need support in loose soils. Starting seeds indoors or in a hoop house before the frost will give you a edge in short season areas. Plants should be 10-12 inches apart.