NITRATES, OXALATES AND ALKALOIDS IN TWO PHENOLOGICAL STAGES OF QUINOA (Chenopodium quinoa Willd) IN IRRIGATED AND RAINFED CONDITIONS

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to characterize a group of 10 varieties of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) and one variety of wild quinoa (Chenopodium album L.) with different color of plant and above-ground dry matter (DM) production by the content of nitrates and oxalates in the whole plant (NWP and OWP), leaves (NL and OL) and stems (NS and OS), and the presence of alkaloids in the whole plant at blooming and flowering in irrigated and rainfed conditions at Montecillo, State of México. Averaged over varieties and environments, NWP, NL and NS were 1935, 513 y 1422 mg kg^-1 of DM at blooming and 1385, 474 and 911 mg kg^-1 of DM at flowering, and OWP, OL and OS were 3.01, 2.2, 0.8 % at blooming and 2.55, 1.99, and 0.55 % at flowering. NWP, NL and NS were lower in plants of pink color (NWP=1773, NL=461 and NS=1312 mg kg^-1 of DM) at blooming, and plants of pink color (NWP=1360, NL=476 and NS=884 mg kg^-1 of DM) and plants of green color (NWP=1253, NL=406 and NS=847 mg kg-1 of DM) at flowering, whereas OWP, OL and OS were lower in plants of pink color (OWP=2.93, OL=2.14 and OS=0.79 %) and plants of green color (OWP=2.89, OL=2.13 and OS=0.76 %) at blooming and plants of pink color (OWP=2.48, OL=1.96 and OS=0.52 %) and plants of green color (OWP=2.51, OL=1.96 and OS=0.55 %) at flowering. Presence of alkaloids was detected in the whole plant at blooming and flowering in irrigated and rainfed conditions, with a greater tendency in rainfed conditions.