Quinoa

Hi all

Im in the process of getting things ready to plan two plots of quinoa. Drip irrigation from collected rain water over the winter and good soil.
Im wondering if anyone has any experience with quinoa here? Also I plant all my rows of vegetables on ground thats been covered with black plasting sheeting to trap moisture and prevent unsmokable weeds from growing. Should i do the same with the quinoa or should i not bother due to the plants leaves shading the bottom? Or because its grain like? All i know is sometimes even in hot days i dont need to turn the drip on every day.and people around here who dont use it have it on twice a day unless theres rain.

I had to look up the plant as I've never even heard of it. And I swiped this nutrition data off the net. It has a shit load of potassium and protein. I may have to try growing it myself. But can you tell me...how does it taste? Is it one of those awful tasting grains that you just eat because it's good for you? Anyway....

Quinoa, a species of goosefoot, is a grain crop grown primarily for its edible seeds. It is a pseudocereal rather than a true cereal, as it is not a member of the true grass family. Wikipedia
Nutrition Facts
Quinoa, uncooked
Amount Per 1 cup (170 g)
Calories 625
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 10 g 15%
Saturated fat 1.2 g 6%
Polyunsaturated fat 6 g
Monounsaturated fat 2.7 g
Cholesterol 0 mg 0%
Sodium 9 mg 0%
Potassium 957 mg 27%
Total Carbohydrate 109 g 36%
Dietary fiber 12 g 48%
Protein 24 g 48%
Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 8% Iron 43%
Vitamin D 0% Vitamin B-6 40%
Vitamin B-12 0% Magnesium 83%

And here is some info on growing that you might find helpful

http://www.gardeningblog.net/how-to-grow/quinoa/

Ye man quinoa actually tastes fucking AMAZING. A cross in taste between rice and couscous with a very mild nutty undertone. Takes a wee while to boil and you need to rinse it to death before boiling due top bitterness from sapopin or something. After eating i made research on how it grows and its basically a weed. Also i think a good size plot of quinoa should give you enough foood for a year no problem. Kinda nice to be able to be self sufficient in 'carbs' and food accompaniement. It would totally kick ass if i didnt have to buy rice for a year. Its also very expensive at health food stores so im hopping i can keep one field for me and my chicken and another for selling
I have a neighbour from Ecuador who says that over in his country its grown in the mountains, never watered and plants giv bountiful yields I got some genetics from the UK for a strain thats been adaptated to lower altitude climates.
I really wonder whether i should lay the plastic sheeting or not... Its not very expensive but for what im planning to grow itd be a tad more than id want to pay right now/

Thanks for the input danyboy. Btw i im a big cat lover and really like your avatars. Is that your cat?

Shit that website gives a pretty low yield, the place i got my seeds from said if well watered and direct sunlight is provided expect 3 ounce a plant minimum and that i can get the odd freak that gets double or more of that.

I guess my only reservation with the plastic is that grasses propagate themselves via stolons that travel just below the surface of the soil and the black plastic would prevent the stolons from emerging. Perhaps a nice layer of mulch would keep in moisture just as well but still allow the plant to spread.
I'm a fan of fractals in nature and fractal imagery. These cat fractals I just swiped off the Internet. There's really cool pix of wolves, owls and other animals also.

from what i have read on it. It has very similar needs as the cannibus plant if that helps

Switched from rice, processed pasta's and other grains for Quinoa for about 5 years now and never going back.

regards,

I guess my only reservation with the plastic is that grasses propagate themselves via stolons that travel just below the surface of the soil and the black plastic would prevent the stolons from emerging. Perhaps a nice layer of mulch would keep in moisture just as well but still allow the plant to spread.
I'm a fan of fractals in nature and fractal imagery. These cat fractals I just swiped off the Internet. There's really cool pix of wolves, owls and other animals also.

Click to expand...

You do have a point, hopwever no light goes thorugh and im shocked with how little water goes a long way with plastic. I might get a bail of hay and lay it down once they pass the seedling stage. But from what i read once the plants reach a foot they pretty much shade the weed propicious area.

Switched from rice, processed pasta's and other grains for Quinoa for about 5 years now and never going back.

Click to expand...

Kinda what i plan to do but im too cheap to pay 12 euro a kilo for it. I love the way it tastes. Im a big fan of indian parathas and chapattis and make my own with wholewheat flour. Do you have any experience with quinoa flour and bread making? ALso i love the fact you can make your own quinoa flour at home.

http://www.alternet.org/food/quinoa-hot-new-superfood-it-moral-eat-it?page=0,1

Thought id share that article, start growing it people! And if anyone has please give me pointers!

From what i researched awhile ago it is a high altitude plant.

i believe if i remember right this stuff is very drought tolerant
this is the stuff that you have to rinse multiple times before cooking
and what your washing off can be used for laundry detergent pretty much isnt it ?

From what i researched awhile ago it is a high altitude plant.

Click to expand...

your washing off can be used for laundry detergent pretty much isnt it ?

Click to expand...

Ye i got some seeds from the UK and the woman said they are adapted to low altitude areas. She also said with my set up to expect around 100g yield per plant. I dont know about using the wash off for laundry. Arent the sapopins very acidic? I hear its a bit soapy, ye.

hows the quinoa coming klite? got any pix to show us?

Ye man check out my KLITE's Huerto Thread. I can start to see some seeds throwing theiir root. Watering everyday, not lettiong soil dry out afraid to not get germination. I feel like im walking in the dark lol. Fuck it its a weed anyways it cant be too hard, im hoping im not jinxing it. This week il doo my other plot so i can hopefully havest in two weeks cause i think ill have around 600 plants, well i did pop 4 seeds per drip so i might leave 2 plants per drip if not too close together and hopefully increase my yield. Will prolly top dress with blood meal when theyre a foot tall to give em a nitro boost. Im quite excited to be honest, though terribly afraid of it turning bad. I think my land is a bit too big for just one person to work.
Also read that quinoa crosses with fat hen, a relative or something. Guess what about 70% of weeds in my property are fat hen, it looks a wee bit like cannabis, it make wee seed buds that turn pink later, like an exotic strain lol. So i guess i cant use my seed for net year.