''Atriplex amnicola'', commonly known as river saltbush or swamp saltbush, is a species of

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

in the family

Amaranthaceae Amaranthaceae ( ) is a family of flowering plants commonly known as the amaranth family, in reference to its type genus '' Amaranthus''. It includes the former goosefoot family Chenopodiaceae and contains about 165 genera and 2,040 species, maki ...

. Endemic to

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, it is native to the floodplains of the Murchison and

Gascoyne The Gascoyne region is one of the nine regions of Western Australia. It is located in the northwest of Western Australia, and consists of the local government areas of Carnarvon, Exmouth, Shark Bay and Upper Gascoyne. The Gascoyne has about of ...

Rivers. River saltbush is a multi-branched shrub whose form ranges from prostrate to erect. In ideal conditions it may be up to four metres wide, and the erect form may be up to 2.5 metres high. The branches of river saltbush spread along the ground, and may layer and take root, especially in the prostrate form. The leaves are bluish-green and covered in fine silvery hairs. There is great variation in leaf size and shape, but they are often spear-shaped, and usually between one and three centimetres long. Male and female flowers are borne on separate plants. Male flowers are a purplish-green colour, and help in clusters at the ends of branches; female flowers usually cluster in the axils between leaves and stems. This is a predominantly

dioecious Dioecy ( ; ; adj. dioecious, ) is a characteristic of certain species that have distinct unisexual individuals, each producing either male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproduction is ...

species, with male and female flowers produced on separate individuals. The fruit is a woody case about five millimetres square, each containing a single seed. River saltbush is very highly salt tolerant, and is used in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in the rehabilitation of saline areas. When grown in saline soil, it has the best long-term survival and growth of any saltbush. It is also fairly

drought A drought is a period of drier-than-normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, ...

tolerant, and tolerates waterlogging well once mature. It is highly favoured by

sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...

, and recovers well from grazing. Studies have shown that the meat of sheep grazed on river saltbush is high in

Vitamin E Vitamin E is a group of eight compounds related in molecular structure that includes four tocopherols and four tocotrienols. The tocopherols function as fat-soluble antioxidants which may help protect cell membranes from reactive oxygen speci ...

and has high "consumer appeal". Disadvantages include a low

volunteering Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergenc ...

rate, and difficulties establishing by direct seeding.

References

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External links

CSIRO Information Sheet: Saltbush lifts sheep meat vitamin content
Meat from sheep which have grazed on saltbush has surprisingly high levels of

vitamin E Vitamin E is a group of eight compounds related in molecular structure that includes four tocopherols and four tocotrienols. The tocopherols function as fat-soluble antioxidants which may help protect cell membranes from reactive oxygen speci ...

, is leaner and more hydrated than regular lamb and has consumer appeal equal to grain-fed lamb. The vitamin E levels could have animal health benefits while extending the shelf-life and maintaining the fresh red colour of saltbush lamb.
Summary of CSIRO Scientific Article
Examines the nutritive value and preference by sheep of two native Australian saltbush species, River Saltbush (''A. amnicola'') and Old Man Saltbush (''A. nummularia''). {{Taxonbar, from=Q4817577 amnicola Eudicots of Western Australia Caryophyllales of Australia Taxa named by Paul Graham Wilson Dioecious plants

See also

References

External links