Yield and content of starch and protein in the seed of the quinoa genotypes puno and titicaca

Abstract

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) is considered as a very important agricultural crop due to its nutritional value and tolerance to different stress factors. The aim of this study was to investigate the differences in yield, the content of starch and protein in the seed of two introduced genotypes of quinoa (Puno and Titicaca) and the possibility of their cultivation in Serbian agroecological conditions. The experiment was carried out during the 2017 growing season in the rain-fed condition in Subotica, Republic of Serbia. The seeds were sowed in the first part of April. Sowing was done at a depth of 2 centimeters, the distance between the rows was 50 cm and between the plants in the row 5 cm. The crops were harvested in the first half of August when quinoa seeds were mature and the amount of moisture in seed was 12%. The harvest of Puno and Titicaca seeds was made by hand. The content of crude proteins was determined according to the Kjeldahl method, while for starch measurement the Ewers polarimetric method was used. Obtained results showed that the yield of plants Titicaca genotype (24.4 g/plant) was higher compared to the yield of plants Puno genotype (21.3 g/plant). Our results did not show significantly different values in protein content between the seeds of Puno (14.1%) and Titicaca (14.0%). Also, the seeds of Titicaca and Puno contained similar starch content (54.1 and 55.6%, respectively). These results indicate that both investigation genotypes can be grown in Serbian agroecological conditions.