TUMBLE PIGWEED, Amaranthus albus L. 1, fruiting branch; 2, seed. Annual, reproducing by seed. Stem pale green, with numerous ascending branches making more or less globular plant, 1 to 3 feet (30 to 90 cm) tall. Breaks off at ground at maturity and is rolled over open fields by wind, distributing the seeds. Leaves spatulate, short-petioled, 1/2 to 1 inch (1.3 to 2.5 cm) long. Flowers small, greenish, in axillary clusters. Seed small, round, shiny, black, each contained in a bladderlike hull. Found in cultivated and fallow land. Dried plants often observed in piles against fences and hedge rows after windstorms.