Yield Component Determination for Quinoa (Chenopedium quinoa Willd.)

Quinoa is a South American pseudo cereal grain that is being developed as a potential alternative grain crop for Ontario. Despite some early success, yields remain inconsistent. Abiotic stresses are known to reduce yields in grain crops when they reduce crop growth rates (CGR) during critical periods for yield component determination. This research looked at the relationship between CGR at different developmental stages and final yield and yield components for Ontario quinoa. In both controlled environment and field experiments, it was found that seed number was the most variable yield component, and it was associated with CGR earlier in development than hypothesized, at around the bud stage. Seed size was determined by CGR during grain fill, as expected, but variation in seed size was less important in determining yield than was seed number. These results highlight the importance of early season CGR for high grain yields in this crop.