Quinoa — Cherry Vanilla Organic

$4.89

Cherry Vanilla organic quinoa seeds are CERTIFIED ORGANIC! This variety is so attractive in the garden with its pink and cream coloured seed heads. It bears the whitest seeds off all our varieties. Cherry Vanilla has particularly tasty baby leaves, so it is an outstanding baby salad green choice. The tall plants bear copious decorative flower clusters followed by huge quantities of tiny edible seeds. To harvest quinoa seeds, cut the seed heads about 60cm (24") down the stem and gather them for drying in small bundles. Dry the bundles indoors, out of direct sunlight. Then bash the bundles inside paper yard waste bags, and the seeds will fall out. It is then easy to separate the dense seeds from the light chaff.

Matures in 100 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

Quick Facts:

Certified organic
Highly ornamental
Best variety for baby leaf
Open pollinated seeds
Gluten free grain

Size: 2g (approx. 636 seeds)

How To Grow: Quinoa greens are packed with vitamins and minerals, and have a nice, mild flavour. The seeds can be ground into a flour that is gluten free, or simply cooked like rice. Continue reading below for our tips on how to grow quinoa from seed.

Difficulty
Easy

Season & Zone
Season: Warm season
Exposure: Full sun

Timing
Direct sow in spring, while night temperatures are still cool. Night time temperatures should be consistently above 10°C (50°F). Optimal soil temperature for germination: 18-24°C (65-75°F). Seeds should germinate in 4-10 days.

Starting
Sow 5mm (¼”) deep, 10 seeds per 30cm (12″), and thin to 25-35cm (10-14″) between plants. If growing for baby leaf production, plants can be spaced more closely.

Days to Maturity: From direct sowing.

Growing
Ideal pH: 6.0-7.5. Use a well-drained, loamy soil with added organic matter in the form of well-rotted compost or manure. Keep weeded, but otherwise quinoa is drought tolerant and undemanding. It’s a great plant for xeriscaping, and the tall plants look good at the back of a floral border.

Harvest
Harvest any time after seeds have changed from green to their calico colours, even after light frost. Read more about How to Harvest Quinoa.

Seed Info
In optimal conditions at least 70% of seeds should germinate. Usual seed life: 3 years. Per 100′ row: 160 seeds, per acre: 42M seeds.

Diseases & Pests
Watch for slug/snail damage to young seedlings. Keep the area free from debris where these pests like to nest.

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