DESCRIPTION OF PLANT

The botanical name of Quinoa is Chenopodium Quinoa. It is a dicotyledonous annual plant of 3-7 feet height. It is not grass but regarded as pseudocereal. It has broad, hairy and loabed leaves. The stem is branched or unbranched. The stem is woody and solid. It may be green or purple in colour. The flower panicles arise from the top of the plant or from the leaf axis. The flowers are of two types i.e. perfect flower and pistillate flower. The seeds are about 2mm in diameter and of white, red or black colour depending on variety of plant. The seeds have an outer coating of saponins which are bitter in taste and make the seeds unpalatable.