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Fat hen

Chenopodium album
A member of the saltbush family, fat hen is also known as lamb’s quarters, melde or goosefoot and is considered one of the most important weeds of the Australian vegetable industry.  It is fast growing and very competitive when crops are establishing. Crop losses of up to 48 per cent have been recorded in sugar beet, 25 per cent in soybeans and 13 per cent in corn. In addition to causing crop losses through yield loss, fat hen hosts a number of diseases including cucumber mosaic virus, bean yellow mosaic virus, potato virus and watermelon mosaic virus. It is also a host of aphids.
Fat hen

 
 
 

Description

Fat hen is an erect, annual herb with angular stems that commonly grows between 0.2 – 2 m tall.  It germinates from spring through to autumn, with leaves that vary in colour but are generally blue/green or sometimes grey/green with a powdery surface. The leaves grow between 2 – 6 cm and vary in shape from oval to trowel shaped with edges that have teeth or irregular lobes. 

Flowering in late summer or early autumn, fat hen has green and white flowers which can produce between 200 to 75,000 seeds per plant which can remain viable for several decades. Fat hen is only spread via seed.

Control

In cropping situations, the best way manage fat hen is to prevent seed set as it is a heavy seeder, with the capability of producing several generations in one season. Additionally, it emerges early and grows rapidly, making it very competitive against emerging crops.  

A range of techniques can be applied to best manage fat hen including; using tillage to increase fat hen germination (for improved weed control), increasing crop density to improve competitiveness and applying herbicides no later than two weeks after emergence to young, small actively growing weeds. 

 

In horticultural crops, Both Betanal® Flow and Tramat® are registered for the control of fat hen in beet crops and Tramat is also registered for control of fat hen in oilseed poppy and onions. Sencor® is registered for the control of fat hen in asparagus, tomatoes and potatoes. 

In broadacre crops, Sencor also has registrations in barley, chickpeas, faba beans, lentils, peas, vetch and white lupins.

Related Products

Betanal Flow
Sencor® 480 SC Selective Herbicide product by Bayer
Tramat® 500 SC Selective Herbicide by Bayer
Alion brand tag
**While not named specifically on the Roundup labels fat hen would be covered under the ‘annual weeds’ claim on some of the labels.

References

Atlas of Living Australia (Viewed April 2020), ‘Chenobium album L.’, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/https://id.biodiversity.org.au/node/apni/2907347

Coleman M, Kristiansen, P, Sindel, B, Fyfe, C, (2018), ‘Fat Hen - Chenopodium album: Weed management guide for Australian vegetable production, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, https://www.une.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/190825/une-weeds-fathen.pdf

Herbiguide (2014), ‘Fat hen’, Herbiguide, http://www.herbiguide.com.au/Descriptions/hg_Fat_Hen.htm

Tamar Valley Weed Strategy Working Group (2015), ‘Fat Hen – Chenopodium album’, https://www.weeds.asn.au/tasmanian-weeds/view-by-common-name/fat-hen/

Victorian Resources Online (Viewed April 2020), ‘Fat Hen - Chenopodium album’, Agriculture Victoria, http://vro.agriculture.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/vrosite.nsf/pages/sip_fat_hen