Old Man Saltbush
Atriplex nummularia
NEMBA category
English: Old Man Saltbush, Giant Saltbush
Atriplex nummularia, or Old Man Saltbush, is a tough, silvery shrub that can handle harsh conditions. It's a bit of a survivor, but it can also out-compete native plants.
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Origins: Native to Australia.
Overall appearance: Atriplex nummularia is a bushy, evergreen shrub with silvery-grey foliage. It's often wider than it is tall.
Height: Typically grows to 1-3 metres.
Width: Can spread 2-5 metres wide.
Leaves: The leaves are small (1-3 cm long), oval to rounded, and a distinctive silvery-grey colour due to a covering of tiny, salt-secreting hairs. They are arranged alternately on the branches.
Flowers: The flowers are small and inconspicuous, greenish or yellowish, and borne in dense clusters (panicles) at the ends of branches. They are wind-pollinated.
Flowering season: Flowers mostly in spring and summer.
Fruits: The fruit is a small, winged, papery structure, 5-10 mm in diameter. It encloses a single seed. It turns from green to straw-coloured as it ripens.
Seeds: The seeds are small, flattened, and dark brown or black.
Bark: The bark is greyish-brown, smooth when young, becoming slightly fissured with age.
Wood: The wood is not commercially valuable due to the plant's size and growth form.
Soil type: Tolerates a wide range of soil types, including sandy, saline, and alkaline soils. It's very drought-tolerant.
Aspect: Prefers full sun.
Edible parts: The leaves can be used as a cooked vegetable (like spinach) in small quantities, but they are salty and not very palatable in large amounts.
Poisonous parts: While not considered highly poisonous, large quantities of the leaves can cause digestive upset due to the high salt content.
Uses: Used for revegetation in dry areas, as a windbreak, and sometimes as fodder for livestock (though it can cause salt toxicity if consumed in large amounts).
Birds attracted: The seeds are eaten by some birds.
Insects attracted: Bees and other pollinators may visit the flowers.
Mammals attracted: Grazing animals, like sheep, may browse the leaves, but it's not a preferred food source.
Provinces a problem: Widespread, especially problematic in drier regions like the Northern Cape, Western Cape, and parts of the Eastern Cape.
Fun Facts:
Old Man Saltbush is incredibly drought-tolerant.
It's a valuable plant for rehabilitating degraded land.
The salty leaves are an adaptation to its arid environment.
It can live for many years.
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