The Final Year of Testing Quinoa

I planted quinoa again in 2010. This will be an informal report because I gave up on taking data on it this year. The crop was a failure. I've decided that it is not the crop to try to grow in Olympia and it's time to think in terms of our climate.

It was a cool, wet summer all over the Pacific Northwest. The temperature never got high in Olympia, probably not hitting 80 degrees for more than for a day or two. It was a marginal growing year for tomatoes and I didn't even try winter squash.

I had decided to try one last thing with growing quinoa: to grow transplants in order to lengthen the growing season. I started seeds indoors in April and transplanted them in May. Most of the five varieties that I've been growing did not grow well this year, were "puny". One or two were better than the others but I failed to note which. The soil may have needed nutrients but since quinoa grows on marginal land in a marginal climate, I thought they would recover. For the most part the quinoa plants did eventually produce seed heads but they did not seem to fully ripen. I harvested a few branches but didn't clean the seed. By October I was allowing the chickens into the garden to harvest their share.

I had initially tried quinoa because I wanted to know if there was a protein food or grain that could be grown here. It's time to think about what does grow in Olympia This is a place of greens and berries. The climate is probably like Japan's but perhaps cooler, maybe a northern coastal Japan? If I'm still gardening in Olympia this summer, it will be the year of brassicas, greens, and onions. I will pick my berries in the wild.

The protein question? We are the people of Salmon Nation and we should be eating the seafood of this area: the salmon from our streams, Olympia oysters, Dungeness crab, and razor clams from the ocean beaches. If vegetarian, we might look for a short season dry bean or pea to grow. The alternative is to grow what grows best here and trade our goods for what grows well elsewhere. Sometimes you have to consider eating the foods of nearby regions (thinking of the Eat Local Movement). Eastern Washington has hotter, drier summers and people there do an excellent job of growing dried beans including lentils and chickpeas. They also grow wheat and it's a thriving wine grape growing region. To the south, the Willamette Valley grows much better warm weather vegetables such as corn and tomatoes than we can. Even inland Western Washington, where the sun shines and there is less of a coastal influence, even there gardens produce tomatoes, peppers, and squash that we can't grow. Yes, it's time to adapt the garden to the local climate.

Quinoa Planted Again

I planted quinoa last year (2008) with not particularly good luck (it was a total failure). The chickens relished the leaves and therefore, stripped the plants. Deborah Kean also planted it at the Oregon State University Vegetable Research Farm last year and had problems with top heavy plants lodging after fall rains. This year I'm trying again with fencing to keep birds out and a little more knowledge about growing the plant here in the Pacific Northwest (water sparingly!).

Five varieties were planted on June 7, 2009. These were planted a single time, no replication of planting, in short (two foot) rows in a raised garden bed. The bed is surrounded by a plastic chicken fence which probably shades the bed slightly. I'll remove the fencing over the top eventually but am being especially careful about keeping chickens out as they could decimate the whole planting in a very short time.

Four of the varieties were the same ones planted last year with the addition of one new variety from Nichols Garden Nursery.

1. Cherry Vanilla (Nichols): "100 days, 5' tall. Open pollinated ... Hot pink and white seed heads are striking in the late summer and fall garden."

2. Dave (Four-O-Seven, Seeds of Change): 90-100 days, 5-6' tall . "Medium sized seed is yellow brown on yellow gold seed heads.

3. Brightest Brilliant (Seeds of Change): 100-110 days, 3-4' tall. The seed packet has no variety description but the website says: "This ornamental and highly edible, nutritious grain blooms in late summer to produce gorgeously rich brugundy [burgundy], orange, yellow, white and pink flower head spikes. The most unusual and striking quinoa we've grown." Unfortunately, there was only a single seed left in packet, but fortunately, that single seed germinated.

4. Faro Traditional (Seeds of Change): 100-130 days, 4' tall. "Most adaptable, southern Chile sea level variety. Green and red topped plants with white/yellow seeds. Mid to long season, adaptable to much of the US. High Yielding."

5. Temuco Traditional (Seeds of Change): 100-110 days, 5-6' tall. "Delicious white-seeded variety. Tall plant produces yellow-green or brilliant red seed heads. One of the best choices for maritime areas, but also grows well in a variety of climates."

This year I had excellent germination (it was a dry June). Plants were thinned to about 6 inches apart (each variety has 1 to 4 plants) as of July 8. I've added the clearest photo I have, taken when plants were 3 weeks old. At this point they all look pretty much the same, they resemble lambs-quarters (another Chenopodium) for those of you who wonder.

Quinoa in the PNW?

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm interested in Western Hemisphere food plants. I've worked in horticulture for a significant part of my adult life before going back to school to become a librarian. My interest in food plants has never left me and I approach part of my garden space as a place to test new plant ideas out.

Last summer I planted 4 quinoa varieties in my garden, all from Seeds of Change. The varieties included Dave (Four-O-Seven), Brightest Brilliant, Temuco Traditional, and Faro Traditional. I planted twice, first planting at the end of May, the second 2 weeks later. Quinoa seeds are small and the packets had few seeds. I didn't count how many I planted each time to see what kind of germination I got but it seemed as though it was not very high. Although the second planting seemed to be more successful than the first. I wasn't sure how to plant them so they were planted shallowly in rows and thinned (where that was necessary) to about 2 inches apart, the rows about a foot apart in raised beds. I will try planting a little differently based on what I've learned. I have no data to report because it seems that quinoa is a favorite food of chickens, liked even more than amaranth or kale. They left stalks only in my garden by mid-summer. I plan to try growing quinoa again next summer and will attempt to contain the birds or protect the garden.

My friend, Deborah, works at the Oregon State University Vegetable Research Farm and we often talk about trying new crops. She also planted quinoa this past year at the farm and sent me an informal report of her observations:

"So here is what we know about quinoa from this summer. We grew 2 varieties: Cherry Vanilla from Nichols, and Brightest Brilliant from Seeds of Change, plus a relative, Red Aztec Spinach (Huanzontle) from Nichols (usually used as a vegetable--leaves are eaten--rather than a grain). They all grew very tall (6 ft or more) and all lodged to some extent, with lower branches breaking off from the weight of the seed. Brightest Brilliant was the worst for lodging--it was all on the ground after the first fall rain. We did get ripe seed, but it would have been hard to harvest good grain from the plants in the mud. We planted late (June 23), though, so I think if you planted in spring you might get a good crop before the fall rains. We did not harvest any... "

I'm rethinking the whole concept of trying to grow quinoa the way that a vegetable crop in the PNW might be grown. Our wet climate and high-nutrient soils may contribute to the lodging problem, and it is, perhaps, not a good idea to plant them in rows. I've looked at pictures of fields of quinoa and it looks like a wheat field (only much taller) and that the climate may be drier. The seed tops look heavy (high yield) and the plants may do better holding each other upright if planted closer, without wide rows between them. I may even try staking them just to see what I am able to harvest. I also think that finding varieties that mature before the rains start will be important for production of seed for eating or planting.

I plan to try again, hopefully this summer. I'll replant the same varieties as last year, will try to find some others, and will also be trying the Nichols' variety, Cherry Vanilla.

So why bother? I think about the types of food plants that we grow in our gardens and they tend to be low-protein and non-storage types. I think about local food security and it motivates me to try to grow plants that are higher in protein or more grain-like, with storage potential.

I did find a website, Quinoa Corporation, with pictures of quinoa growing in South America. They sell the grain and prepared foods made from it and have some recipes for using it. There are at least 2 recipes for 'tabouli' which is how I use quinoa, to make tabouli-like salads.