Canihua (Chenopodium pallidicaule)
Description
Chenopodium pallidicaule, known as qa-iwa, qa-awa or qa-awi (Quechua, Hispanicized spellings ca-ihua, canihua, ca-ahua, ca-ahui, also kaniwa, ka-iwa) is a species of goosefoot, similar in character and uses to the closely related quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa).Qa-iwa is native to the Andean region, with more than 200 varieties, and it has been farmed in the Altiplano for millennia. As a crop, qa-iwa has important beneficial characteristics, including tolerance of high mountain conditions, high protein content, high antioxidant capacity and phenolic contentand a lack of the saponins which complicate quinoa use.Qa-iwa is a herbaceous and annual plant. This species is diploid with a chromosome number of 2n = 18. There are two types of this species, which differ in their branching.The lasta type shows high branching, whereas the saguia type is characterized by few branching and its more erected growth. The plant grows to 20-60 cm high and is therefore shorter than its close relative quinoa.Qa-iwa also vary from quinoa in its inflorescence and its flower traits. The inflorescences are situated on the terminal and axillar cimas.The flowers are small and without petals. There are three different types of flower. Hermaphrodite consists of both the stamen and the pistils. Another flower type are the pistillate flowers, which have pistils, but no stamens. The third type of flower are male sterile flowers.The fruits are small and dark, which contain brown or black seed with a diameter of 0.5 to 1.5 mm. The fruits are deciduous, which means that the seeds are lost spontaneously and are then dispersed. Once maturation is reached, the plant stem and leaves change in colour to yellow, red, green or purple.
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum: Magnoliophyta
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Class: Magnoliopsida
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Order: Caryophyllales
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Family: Amaranthaceae
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Genus: Chenopodium
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