Özet:

Drought and salinity are two widespread environmental problems induced by climate change and improper applications in agriculture and have important adverse effects on agricultural production. To sustain crop production in such areas for food security, cultivating new crops that can growth under these unfavorable conditions is one of the measures. Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) is an annual grain plant originated from the Andean region of South America. This plant has potential to be an alternative crop for arid and salt affected agricultural lands or poor soils with its ability to tolerate various abiotic stress factors and adaptability to different environmental conditions. Its high gluten free nutritional component is another characteristic that makes quinoa an important crop for human diets. In this study, quinoa was introduced as a new crop for Turkey and cultivation possibilities of quinoa in arid and salt affected areas of the country was evaluated in the light of the research carried out in Cukurova University between the years of 2009 and 2012. According to this research results quinoa could cope with high salinity in the root zone up to 40 dS m-1 of electrical conductivity of irrigation water, which many other crops couldn’t tolerate this salinity level. In conclusion, quinoa may be suggested as an alternative crop for marginal agricultural areas thanks to its stress tolerant characteristic, adaptability to different agroenvironmental conditions with its various cultivars can be grown from sea level to highlands, nutritional component and economic value

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