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Huazontle Seeds

Huazontle Seeds - Chenopodium nuttalliae - Aztec Spinach

Chenopodium nuttalliae
Aztec Spinach
  • Annual
  • Full Sun
  • Germination Tested November 4, 2025: 94%
    $5.50 CAD
    $5.50 CAD
    Sale Sold out

    Adrian Chiles, Guardian columnist, calls Huazontle his “favourite new superfood.” This relative of quinoa is pretty obscure in Northern Turtle Island, so when Skye discovered someone, anyone, talking about it, she was surprised — and delighted.

    Huazontle is a vastly underappreciated food in many places. It is an undemanding, reliable crop, provided you don’t plant the small seeds too deep. It grows fast in average soil, providing leaves once cooked do indeed taste like spinach. In Mexico, the green, immature seed heads are eaten, and the grain is apparently edible too. It produces beautiful, bright pink-red stalks and seed heads, making it strikingly ornamental as well. It’s heat and drought tolerant and quite resilient. It is fun and interesting to grow.

    From a taxonomy perspective, it seems undecided if this plant is its own species or a subspecies of Chenopodium berlandieri. The science is clear however, that it has a long history of both wild collection and cultivation in both North America and Mexico, and it’s likely it was domesticated twice, once in Eastern North America and once in Mexico:

    “In eastern North America, archaeological evidence indicates that Ch. berlandieri was harvested as a wild plant as early as 8,500 B.P. [before present time] and was an important domesticated crop plant in the region for >3,500 years (from ca. 1850 B.C. to A.D. 1750)”

    “The archaeological record of Mexico also offers clear evidence of human harvesting of wild stands of Ch. berlandieri, along with a variety of other plants producing similarly sized small seeds, for thousands of years before the arrival of the Spanish.” 

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    Seeds are grown by our friends Skye and Maple at Tardigrade Seeds on Salt Spring Island, BC. 

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    Growing Info: Grow Huazontle in the summer, starting it after there is no chance of frost. One way to determine a good starting time is to watch weeds: if lambsquarters is sprouting, it should
    be time to plant this as well. If growing only for greens, you can start early summer for fastest growth. Otherwise, you may need to start late spring. This plant grows well in average soils, provided soil is well-drained and it receives full sun. The
    seeds are small, making sowing somewhat tricky. I have only direct sown it, but I imagine transplanting, if done at a small size, would also work. Sow on soil surface, lightly press into soil, and cover no more than 1⁄8” deep. Don’t let it dry out. Space plants 6” apart for greens production, and 2-3’’ apart if you want to grow full-sized plants — over 6’. Selectively harvest leaves as it grows or cut off whole branches.

    For traditional Mexican dishes, harvest green stalks with green seedheads.

    Dry growing info: 
    It is quite heat and drought tolerant. Our patch was grown without irrigation, in the poorer, drier part of the field, and the plants showed little evidence of water stress. If attempting to dry grow Huazontle, space plants widely, mulch, keep well weeded, and employ windbreaks.


    Our large thanks to Siskiyou Seeds for providing our stock seed.

    Growing Instructions

    Growing Info: Grow Huazontle in the summer, starting it after there is no chance of frost. One way to determine a good starting time is to watch weeds: if lambsquarters is sprouting, it should
be time to plant this as well. If growing only for greens, you can start early summer for fastest growth. Otherwise, you may need to start late spring. This plant grows well in average soils, provided soil is well-drained and it receives full sun. The
seeds are small, making sowing somewhat tricky. I have only direct sown it, but I imagine transplanting, if
done at a small size, would also work. Sow on soil surface, lightly press into soil, and cover no more than 1⁄8” deep. Don’t let it dry out. Space plants 6” apart for greens production, and 2-3’’ apart if you want to grow full-sized plants — over 6’. Selectively harvest leaves as it grows or cut off whole branches.

    For traditional Mexican dishes, harvest green stalks with green seedheads.

    Dry growing info: 
It is quite heat and drought tolerant. Our patch was grown without irrigation, in the poorer, drier part of the field, and the plants showed little evidence of water stress. If attempting to dry grow Huazontle, space plants widely, mulch, keep well weeded, and employ windbreaks.

    Shipping & Returns

    By placing an order, customers agree to the shipping & refund policies detailed on this page.

    Most orders are sent via Canada Post to keep costs low.

     

    Shipping within Canada 

    We ship seeds via Canada Post within Canada for $6 to $8 depending on weight.

    We ship seeds in Canada via regular letter mail, which is an untracked service, and usually takes 1-3 weeks to arrive once we fulfill your order, but occasionally orders take longer, especially to the Eastern provinces and rural areas.

    Customers can now opt for tracked, express shipping options at checkout if you require faster delivery.

    Larger bulbs and plants are usually sent via tracked flat rate box.

     

    Shipping to the US

    We require all US shoppers to obtain a Small Seed Lot Import Permit before we can mail your seeds. It's free to apply, and you will likely be granted the permit instantly,  although some require additional verification via mail.

    We recommend obtaining a permit BEFORE placing your order.

    Please email your permit and shipping label PDFs to us promptly before or after you order.

    If you do not email us your permit documents after one week, we will refund your order minus a $10 processing charge.

    How to apply for your Small Seed Lot Import Permit:

    1. Please follow these instructions carefully so you don't end up with the wrong type of permit!
    2. Go to https://efile.aphis.usda.gov/s/
    3. Select PPQ-587 in the dropdown menu and click "Get Started".
    4. Please use the exact same name and address as on your order.
    5. Login and follow the instructions to obtain a permit.
    6. Under the Commodity Type drop down, make sure you select the "Small Lots of Seed". See screenshot below.
    7. It's best to list "Eligible Taxa" instead of listing all the species you'd like to import so you don't need to worry about missing any species you ordered.
    8. Once you receive your permit, promptly email us 2 PDFs: a copy of your permit and a copy of the yellow/green shipping labels. Tell us which USDA station you want us to send the seeds to. If not mentioned we will choose one close to you. Our email is grow@cicadaseeds.ca
    9. Once we've accepted your documents, please contact the plant inspection station we are shipping to and let them know to expect your shipment. Station phone numbers can be found here (select "United States" then "Plant Inspection Stations" in the top 2 fields, then click "Search"). This reminds stations to check for your package, otherwise they may forget about it.

    Need help? Contact the APHIS plant permit team at:

    EMAIL: plantproducts.permits@usda.gov

    PHONE: 877-770-5990

     

    What happens next?

    After receiving your documentation, we will mail your seeds to an inspection facility in the US. We will ship via tracked parcel, and you will receive the tracking number when your order has shipped. Orders will be mailed first to a plant inspection facility in the US, then they forward the package on to your address after inspection. Tracking is only available to the inspection facility, not to your address.

    The mail and inspection process can take several weeks, depending on how long the inspection takes. Unfortunately we are not able to replace packages that are confiscated or destroyed by customs, or for any additional duties or tariffs placed on your order. 

     

    Shipping Internationally

    International customers can select tracked or untracked shipping at checkout. The package will list the contents as "Garden Seeds". It is your responsibility to ensure you have the required import permit. We are not able to send any live plant materials internationally. Cicada Seeds will not be responsible for any orders held or confiscated by customs, or for any additional duties or tariffs placed on your order.

    International shipping countries include: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong SAR, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom.

    This list may change without notice. Sometimes Canada Post will not allow us to ship to certain countries due to wars or natural disasters, see this page for delivery service alerts.

    Please reach out if your country is not on this list, email us and we will try to arrange an alternate shipping option. 

     

    Refund Policy

    Refunds: We stand behind our seeds, so if for some reason you are not satisfied with your purchase, please reach out to us via email and we will do our best to make it right. Please note that shipping costs are non-refundable.

    Cancelled orders: If you wish to cancel an order after purchasing, we may refund your order minus card processing and admin fees at our discretion.

    Refused orders: We cannot issue a refund if you refuse to accept an order we've sent to you.

    Incorrect addresses: Please double check your mailing address, and let us know ASAP if you've entered an incorrect address at checkout. We may need to charge for additional shipping fees to resend orders.

    Ecologically Grown

    Seeds are grown ecologically without the use of chemical pesticides or fertilizers.

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