Alternative Rotational Crops

A field of several quinoa varieties in varying colors.

Field trial of different buckwheat varieties in bloom.

Aerial view of researchers standing in quinoa plots.

A graduate student closely inspecting quinoa plants in a plot.

Buckwheat flowering in the foreground with a group talking in the background.

Various buckwheat varieties labeled with stakes in a field.

A graduate student giving a talk to a group in front of a quinoa plot.

Managing quinoa to optimize soil health and nutrition

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) has gained popularity in recent years for its adaptability to a wide range of growing regions, stress tolerance, and unique nutritional composition. Despite a long history of cultivation in South America, it is a relatively new crop to the PNW, and there are key knowledge gaps related to fertility management, harvest timing, and the effect of the environment on nutritional composition. Through our research at the NWREC, and in collaboration with quinoa growers in Western Washington, we aim to understand how organic nutrient amendments, soil health status, and saponins (a bitter plant-derived chemical coating the outside of quinoa seeds) affect quinoa nutritional profiles. Our findings will help develop nutrient management guidelines and a roadmap for quinoa growers looking to improve their soils’ health and the nutritional quality of the quinoa they grow. We are partnering with quinoa breeders, food scientists, and gut microbiome specialists on this work, which is funded by an FFAR Seeding Solutions grant led by Dr. Kevin Murphy.

Close-up of buckwheat plants and flowers with a bee on one flower.

Breeding and managing buckwheat for ecosystem services

Common buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) is frequently used as a summer crop to suppress weeds, improve soil stability, and attract pollinators, but the grain has important culinary uses as well. The WSU Sustainable Seed Systems Lab and Bread Lab are working to breed buckwheat varieties that work well for local farmers and can be used for various culinary purposes. Through the Soil to Society and OREI More Bang for Your Buckwheat projects, we are testing these varieties to evaluate the soil and agroecosystem benefits they provide in rotation with diversified vegetable systems and to optimize agronomic management like seeding rates and planting dates.

Learn more:

Check out this article in Civil Eats on buckwheat and our project: “From Bees to Beer, Buckwheat Is a Climate-Solution Crop”
Get info on growing and cooking with buckwheat at the Culinary Breeding Network’s Buckwheat Zine PDF

Related Extension publications:

PNW Extension publication on Buckwheat Production West of the Cascades
WSU Extension publication on Growing Quinoa in Washington State

Who’s involved?

Evan Domsic

PhD Candidate,
Working on quinoa

Annah Young

PhD Candidate,
Working on buckwheat and perennial wheat

Erik Spitzer

PhD Student,
Working on buckwheat