One of the indigenous staple crops of Andean South America is the pseudocereal quinoa (
Chenopodium quinoa Willd.). While it was traditionally placed in its own family Chenopodiaceae, recent genetic work located it within the monophyletic family Amaranthaceae. It is a tall, little-branched shrub that produces thousands of seeds in a large, exserted panicle (Fig.
1). There are many varieties that are primarily distinguished based on the color of both the plant and seed. Quinoa varieties range in color from white, yellow, red, and purple.
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References
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Further Reading
Advisory Committee on Technology Innovation. 1989. Lost crops of the Incas: little-known plants of the Andes with promise for worldwide cultivation. Washington D.C.: National Academy Press.Google Scholar
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Pearsall, D. M. 1992. The origins of plant cultivation in South America, in W. Cowan & P. J. Watson (ed.) The origins of agriculture: an international perspective: 73-205. Washington (DC): Smithsonian Institution Press.Google Scholar
Raus, P. M., A. Bonifacio, C. F. Ruas, D. J. Fairbanks & W. R. Andersen. 1999. Genetic relationship among 19 accessions of six species of chenopodium l., by random amplified polymorphic DNA fragments (rapd). Euphytica 105: 25-32.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
