Atriplex hastata Linnaeus var. heterocarpa Fenzl; A. heterosperma Bunge.

Herbs annual, 50-120 cm tall. Stem erect, ribbed, slightly furfuraceous, usually branched above middle. Petiole 0.5-1.5 cm; leaf blade triangular to hastate, 2-6 × 1.5-5 cm, abaxially densely gray furfuraceous, or both surfaces same color, base cuneate to broadly so, margin entire or coarsely serrate, with a pair of lobes near base, apex obtuse or acute. Inflorescences terminal panicles. Male flower: perianth 5-parted; stamens 5. Fruiting bracts connate at base, orbicular or suborbicular, furfuraceous when young, entire at margins, of 2 types: small fruiting bracts 1.5-2 mm; seed lenticular, ca. 0.5 mm in diam.; testa black, sublustrous, leathery; large fruiting bracts 3-4.5 mm in diam.; seed compressed globose, 2-3 mm in diam.; testa yellow-brown, not lustrous, membranous. Fl. Jun-Aug, fr. Aug-Sep.

Moist saline and alkaline places, lake shores, meadows, deserts. N Xinjiang [Kazakhstan, Russia (W Siberia); SW Asia, SE Europe; introduced in North America].