Chenopodium blomianum Aellen in Bot. Notiser 1928: 203. 1928; R.R.Stewart, Ann. Cat. Vasc. Pl. W. Pak. & Kashm. 221. 1972; Chenopodium ficifolium subsp. blomianum var. indicola (Murr) Aellen in Hegi, Ill. Fl. Mitteleur. Bd. III/2: 624. 1960, comb. inval.

Annual, 20-70(-150) cm tall. Stem usually erect, green-striped, sometimes yellow or tinged with red, rarely with red spots in leaf axils, branched especially in lower parts, branches spreading, fairly short. Leaves fairly thin, glabrous to farinose, greyish green, petiole as long as or shorter than blade; blade 2-5 cm long, elliptic to ovate, usually with a forward-projecting tooth or lobe on both sides near base; middle lobe ± oblong, with several teeth or sometimes subentire, obtuse to truncate at apex. Inflorescence a terminal, much branched rather loose panicle, leafless only in uppermost parts; bracts narrowly lanceolate, usually entire; glomerules small. Perianth segments 5, connate to the middle, slightly keeled on back. Stamens 5. Stigmas 2. Fruits falling with perianth. Pericarp fairly adherent. Seeds horizontal, black, 0.8-1.0 mm, roundish in outline, margin ± obtuse; testa with radial striae and radially elongated fairly shallow pits, with sinuous margins.

Fl. & Fr. Per.: January - June (- November).

Type: Described from Sweden from an adventive plant.

Gardens, fields and other cultivated places, waste lands; in sandy to clayey, often saline soils. 370-700 m; Distribution: From Afghanistan to India, China, Japan and SE Asia; introduced to N Australia.

Aellen (l.c.) divided C. ficifolium into two subspecies, subsp. ficifolium (from Europe to Siberia) and subsp. blomianum (from Indian subcontinent) based on seed coat, and separated further taxa from the latter on the basis of leaf shape. The rank accepted here should be considered provisional especially because the variation is badly known in the vast other Asian areas of C. ficifolium. Even if there are also differences between Indian and European C. ficifolium in leaf shape, the variation in the leaf shape is wide and partly overlapping, and in some cases the races cannot be separated with certainty without seeds.