Bathuwa / White Goose Foot
Chenopodium album
Also known as Soft Hornwort, Wild Spinach, Pig Weed
- Habit
- Herb
- Found in India
- Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Chenopodium album
- Genus
- Chenopodium
- Family
- Chenopodiaceae
- Habit
- Herb
- Distribution
- Continental Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, America, Malaysia
- Found in India
- Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Ladakh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Punjab, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf arrangement
- AlternaterecordedOne leaf per node, arranged in a spiral or zigzag up the stem.“The leaves are alternate and varied in appearance.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf margin
- ToothedrecordedA saw-like or jagged edge (serrate or dentate).“The first leaves, near the base of the plant, are toothed and roughly diamond-shaped, 3–7 cm long and 3–6 cm broad.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf surface
- HirsuterecordedCovered in coarse, stiff, bristly hairs.“The first leaves, near the base of the plant, are toothed and roughly diamond-shaped, 3–7 cm long and 3–6 cm broad.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
Characters marked “recorded” are for Bathuwa itself; the rest are typical of the Chenopodiaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower arrangement
- CymerecordedA branched cluster where the central/terminal flower opens first.“The small flowers are radially symmetrical and grow in small cymes on a dense branched inflorescence 10–40 cm long.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Panicle
- Fruit
- Berry
Characters marked “recorded” are for Bathuwa itself; the rest are typical of the Chenopodiaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- बथुवा bathuwa,बथुआ bathua
- Nepali
- बेथे bethe, बेथु
- Bengali
- বেথো শাক betho shaak, বেথুয়া শাক bethuya shaak, বথুয়া
- Tamil
- சக்கரவர்த்தி கீரை chakravarthi keerai, பருப்புக்கீரை paruppu-k-kirai, சக்கரவர்த்திக் கீரை
- Telugu
- పప్పుకూర pappukura, వాస్తుకము vastukamu
- Kannada
- ಚಕ್ರವರ್ತಿ Chakravarti, ಚಕ್ಕವತ್ತ Chakkavatta, ಹುಚ್ಚುಚಕ್ಕೋತ Huchchu chakkotha
- Malayalam
- പരിപ്പുചീര parippuchira, വാസ്തുചീര vastuchira, വാസ്തുചീര
- Marathi
- चाकवत chakvat, वासुकें vasukem, चाकवत
Bathuwa in India
Bathua is a beloved winter leafy green that grows half-wild in fields across North India — बथुवा bathuwa (Hindi), சக்கரவர்த்தி கீரை chakravarthi keerai (Tamil), పప్పుకూర pappukura (Telugu), ಚಕ್ರವರ್ತಿ Chakravarti (Kannada), പരിപ്പുചീര parippuchira (Malayalam), चाकवत chakvat (Marathi). Chenopodium album is recorded across Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Delhi, Ladakh, especially as a weed of wheat and gram fields.
Uses
The tender leaves are a prized winter saag — cooked on their own, mixed into sarson da saag, stirred into raita and stuffed into parathas. It is nutritious and free for the gathering; older plants are also fed to livestock.
How to Identify Bathuwa
An erect herb with diamond-to-arrow-shaped, irregularly toothed leaves whose undersides and growing tips are dusted with a fine, mealy white powder that rubs off — the surest field mark. Tiny greenish flowers cluster in dense spikes.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is White Goose foot called in different Indian languages?
- बथुवा bathuwa (Hindi); சக்கரவர்த்தி கீரை chakravarthi keerai (Tamil); పప్పుకూర pappukura (Telugu); ಚಕ್ರವರ್ತಿ Chakravarti (Kannada); പരിപ്പുചീര parippuchira (Malayalam); चाकवत chakvat (Marathi); বেথো শাক betho shaak (Bengali).
- How do you cook bathua?
- Bathua leaves are cooked as a winter saag, blended into sarson da saag, mixed into raita, or stuffed into parathas across North India.
- How do you identify bathua?
- Look for diamond-shaped toothed leaves with a mealy white powder on the underside and growing tips that rubs off on your fingers.
Chenopodiaceae
Goosefoot Family
Bathuwa belongs to the Chenopodiaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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Common plant problems
All plant problem & care guides →More in Chenopodiaceae
View all Chenopodiaceae →Sources: GBIF — Chenopodium album (India distribution & vernacular names) (CC BY 4.0) · iNaturalist — Chenopodium album (regional names, India observations) (CC BY 4.0) · Wikipedia — Chenopodium album (background/comprehension only) (CC BY-SA 4.0)